Already in May Luxor Solar realized a 90.75 kW solar installation for an orchard drip irrigation system in Kneževi Vinogradi in the north-east of Croatia. Strategic partner Solarni Projekti Doo installed the system on a turnkey basis. Luxor Solar delivered for this project 363 polycrystalline Ecoline LX-250P modules. At the same time, the old water pumps for the irrigation of an orchard. have been replaced by more efficient PV pumps from Lorenz. Foundations were delivered by Krinner, mounting systems by Schletter
Return of invest 5-6 years without subsidy
The investor Rabo Ltd. completed the construction of the new solar pump station (SPS) end of May. Net investments costs were around 200,000 Euro, with an 80 percent support of the EU. “Return of invest with the EU subsidy is around one year, without EU subsidy around five to six years”, Nino Sijeric from Luxor Solar says.
Replacement of diesel generators
The pumps are located at three plants outside the village. In the past, six water pumps transported water and irrigated the orchards at the plant Rabo I - III. The system was powered by diesel generators which used 33,500 litres fuel per year. This corresponds to 330.2 MWh of electricity. The major goal of the project was to replace diesel with a more environmental-friendly energy source. The new solar pump system only needs about 123 MWh electricity yearly.
Complex system with solar pump station
The plant Rabo I powers the pump which transports the water from four wells with 220 m3/daily to the lagoon with a size of 800 m3, where it is stored. The expected solar energy production is about 16.4 MWh per year. Rabo II produces power to transport the water from the lagoon to the reservoir. For this segment, 42 MWh solar electricity p.a. are expected. At Rabo III, 64.8 MWh clean electricity p.a. are estimated, to transport water from the reservoir to the orchards. In summary, the irrigation system in Kneževi Vinogradi produces 123.2 MWh electricity p.a. which covers 100 percent of the total demand for the new SPS. The estimated CO2 savings are 48.44 tons p.a.
Strong local partnerships – new project realized in June
“Strong long-term partnerships are the key to success”, Sijeric says. Presently two to three partners distribute and deliver the Croatian market for Luxor Solar. In June another solar powered irrigation system for 50 hectares of cherries was installed in Ninski Stanovi, close to Zadar.
With more than 3.5 MW of installed capacity, Luxor Solar has a market share of about 10 percent in Croatia. In Morocco Luxor recently also installed solar irrigation systems. (HCN)
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