The combined capacity of the two facilities totals 80 megawatts (MWp). The parks are located in the Tabernas Desert, a region close to the southern Spanish city of Almeria offering a particularly high PV yield with more than 300 days of sunshine per year.
The two PV facilities, namely “La Cabrita” with 50 MWp, which already went into operation last year, and 30 MWp “EGA”, which was completed a few weeks ago and has now been handed over to the investor, are part of a larger project pipeline with a planned total capacity of 180 MWp that the SENS Spanish subsidiary is currently implementing with its partner Aurinka.
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The solar park “Tabernas II” with a further 50 MWp will be implemented as the next component in the project over the coming months, with construction at the site already well under way. A further construction phase with another 50 MWp is to follow during the course of this year. Here, too, the proven EPC service provider SENS will take charge of the planning, implementation and commissioning up to turnkey handover to the investor Aquila Capital, as well as being responsible for the subsequent maintenance together with its partner Aurinka.
Solar parks create additional added value
Given the ideal site conditions for photovoltaic systems, these two parks now in the hands of the investor on their own generate around 160,000 megawatt hours (MWh) per year, corresponding to an annual CO2 avoidance of around 75,000 metric tons.
Besides the abundant yield of carbon-neutral, green energy, the SENS solar parks have another positive effect: They provide shade for native plants and animals, improving their quality of life and so contributing to preserving biodiversity.
Compensatory measures improve the quality of life of flora and fauna
Because the Tabernas desert is designated as a nature reserve, additional compensatory measures – for example the construction of feeding stations and drinking troughs, perches, the planting of forage crops and the creation of shady dens – are required by the Spanish nature conservation authorities, giving the solar parks an additional positive impact on their surroundings.
With completion of the two parks and the upcoming construction of “Tabernas II” as the next part of the project, SENS is moving another step closer to the expansion targets it has set itself in the attractive Spanish PV market.
Outlook
“We will be intensifying our activities in Spain significantly over the coming months - both in the area of large-scale plants and in the C&I segment and adjacent technologies,” says SENS Managing Director André Kremer in looking ahead to the near future. (hcn)
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