EDP invests in off-grid solar, storage

Portuguese power utility, EDP has announced two more operations in its increasing renewable energy business outside of Portugal.

In one press release, EDP announces a €500,000 investment in Solshare, a start-up providing off-grid home solar solutions in Bangladesh. “This startup has developed and commercializes a solution that is installed in homes with distributed generation systems, such as solar panels, and that allows for the transaction of energy credits between various dwellings,” EDP said.

The start-up’s solution, named Solbox, enables homeowners to use peer-to-peer transactions, based on micro-networks, for the transfer of excess power to other houses or commercial establishments, the utility explained. Solshare is expected to install at least 5,000 units by the end of this year.

“We believe that the smart peer-to-peer networks we are building in Bangladesh may be the future for utilities globally. The 5 million solar home systems that we are starting to interconnect here are just the beginning. We are extremely proud that EDP and other partners have decided to join us on this exciting journey,” said Solshare CEO, Sebastian Groh.

In a separate statement, EDP revealed that its renewable energy unit, EDP Renováveis (EDPR) has switched on a large-scale storage system, coupled with its Cobadin Wind Farm, located in the Romanian eastern region of Constanța. The company said its “Stocare Project” is the first of its kind in Romania, where it currently operates more than 500 MW of installed wind capacity.

“This type of power storage facility could be a turning point in the energy market in the coming years, as it will convert renewable energy such as wind or solar photovoltaic into constant energy sources and therefore more efficient and predictable,” the company said, without providing further technical or financial details on the project.

EDP has recently expanded its renewable energy business, traditionally dominated by wind, into solar and hybrid wind-solar projects. In August, it also adopted a new blockchain technology, developed by Austrian company, Riddle&Code, to measure how much power owners of distributed generation PV systems in Brazil self-consume or inject into the grid under net metering.