Lightsource bp has begun construction of the first utility-scale solar PV project in Trinidad & Tobago, a 148MWp project owned by oil subsidiaries bp Alternative Energy Trinidad and Tobago and Shell Renewables Caribbean.
The project is split over two sites – Brechin Castle (122MWp) and Orange Grove (26MWp) – and is expected to generate around 300,000MWh of power a year. A sod-turning ceremony was held at Brechin Castle to commemorate the construction.
Lightsource bp will continue to handle construction and operations and maintenance (O&M) contracts will be taken over by Grupotec Servicios Avanzados S.A. and SDV West Indies.
The government of Trinidad and Tobago first approved the project in December. The National Energy Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago originally held an option to take up a stake in the project, and Lighsource confirmed that Trinidadian public utilities were in attendance at the commencement ceremony.
Lightsource bp also recently entered the German market with a plan to develop 300-400MW of solar a year in Germany alone by 2030.