Estonian independent power producer Sunly has started construction on three utility-scale solar PV parks in Latvia.
The combined capacity of the portfolio will reach 225MW and is planned to be developed in the Valmiera, Krāslava, and Madona regions.
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Construction of the first project, located in Valmiera and with a capacity of 54MW, has already begun, while work on a substation has commenced for the 90MW solar PV plant in Krāslava. The third project, with a capacity of 81MW, will be located near another solar park from Sunly in the Madona region, which has an installed capacity of 11MW.
The 225MW Latvian solar PV portfolio is part of the company’s long-term strategy in the Baltic region and Poland, for which it secured €300 million (US$326 million) in debt financing for a 1.3GW renewables portfolio earlier this year.
All three projects are expected to be built as hybrid parks combining solar PV with battery energy storage systems (BESS). However, the company did not disclose the capacity of the BESS plants. The approach of combining different energy generation sources at a single connection point will allow the company to reduce operational costs and grid connection.
Sunly also highlighted the need for energy producers to prepare for the country, along with Estonia and Lithuania, to disconnect from the Russia-controlled frequency area called BRELL in February 2025. Thus, the implementation of energy storage solutions for “security purposes”.
Priit Lepasepp, CEO at Sunly, said: “Continuous technological development is essential if we are to increase security and stability in the energy market in the region. Our goal is to integrate storage solutions into as many solar and wind parks as possible. With the in-house team of storage and electricity trading, we are constantly looking for new ways to make prices for end-consumers less volatile”.
Sunly currently has 294MW of operational solar PV capacity.
| PV Tech publisher Solar Media will be organising the fourth edition of Large Scale Solar Central and Eastern Europe in Warsaw, Poland 26-27 November 2024. The event will focus on Eastern Europe with a packed programme of panels from industry leaders responsible for the build out of solar and storage projects in Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and the Baltics. For more information visit the event website. |
