A round-up of the latest project development news from the solar industry, as Vattenfall completes its maiden floating solar project, Acciona breaks ground on a 238MWp array in Chile and one of the Middle East’s largest bifacial solar projects completes three months early.
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Vattenfall completes maiden floating solar project
28 September 2020: Swedish state-backed energy giant Vattenfall has completed its first floating solar farm.
The 1.2MW project, first announced late last year, has been completed on behalf of Netterden, a sand and gravel producer in Groningen. It has been developed on a body of water made through sand and gravel extraction, with the electricity generated used to power industrial equipment at the facility.
Vattenfall was responsible for the project’s development as prime contractor, while Netterden financed the project.
“Netterden's vision on socially responsible business was the main reason for launching this project. Green power is a natural part of this. This ambition is an excellent fit with Vattenfall's mission to make fossil-free living possible within one generation. We are pleased to have had the opportunity to make this project feasible for them,” Ivo Iprenburg, business development manager at Vattenfall, said.
Acciona breaks ground on 238MWp Chile solar facility
23 September 2020: Acciona has broken ground on a solar project in Chile which, once complete, will have a generation capacity of 238MWp.
The Malgarida complex, formed of two separate arrays, will be Acciona’s seventh renewable energy project in the South American solar hotspot and will take the company’s total installed capacity to just shy of 1GW (922MW) once commissioned next year.
The projects will feature 580,000 modules using horizontal trackers, however Acciona has not confirmed specifically which suppliers would be used.
Malgarida I and II will require a total investment of US$170 million to complete, but will generate 654GWh of electricity each year.
PV Tech uncovered the growing role solar is playing in Chile’s energy transition, detailing why the Latin American nation has emerged as one of global solar’s hottest markets, in a feature which can be read here.
105MW project in Oman races to complete months ahead of schedule
29 September 2020: A 105MW project in the Sultanate of Oman has commenced commercial operations three months ahead of schedule.
The project is among the largest solar arrays operational in the Middle East to use bifacial panels.
Its development was put up for tender by Petroleum Development Oman and built by a consortium including Japan’s Marubeni, with Enertis providing engineering services.
Power produced by the facility is procured by Petroleum Development Oman under a 23-year power purchase agreement.