This first 200 kilowatt (kW) phase of SolFocus’ planned 3MW concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) solar power plant at the Institute of Concentration Photovoltaic Systems (ISFOC) in Spain is ready to operate. A further 300kW will be ready in a month, according to the company. ISFOC will own and operate the plant as part of its testing and evaluation goals for further CPV installations within Spain in the future.
“We chose SolFocus’ CPV arrays as part of the ISFOC project because we believed their non-imaging optical design would provide efficient and reliable systems,” said Dr. Pedro Banda, Director General of ISFOC. “We had confidence that they would be able to meet not just the design challenges, but the manufacturing challenges for volume deployment as well; we could not be more pleased with the results.”
“Completing this first stage of the ISFOC project marks a major milestone for SolFocus, and for concentrator photovoltaics in general, on our way toward achieving grid parity for renewable energy,” said Gary D. Conley, CEO of SolFocus. “Working with the ISFOC team in this collaborative project of commercial deployment and scale, we are proud to deliver on the immense promise and potential that CPV holds in scaling to meet the world’s energy needs.”
SolFocus claims that its CPV solar panels have the lowest carbon footprint in manufacturing, and are over 95 percent recyclable.
