Emiliano Bellini
Another solar PPA announced in Spain
Energy company Iberdrola will supply power to telecoms business Euskatel. The electricity will be generated by the 391 MW Núñez de Balboa solar plant the company is building in southern Spain, for which Iberdrola secured a first PPA last summer.
Micro and mini-grids to bring power to Indonesia’s off-grid communities
The government wants to help the provinces of eastern Indonesia – in particular Papua, which has the lowest electrification rate in the country. Policymakers are in talks with the Asian Development Bank and seeking advice for implementation.
Price of solar keeps falling in Lebanon
According to a report from the United Nations Development Programme, the turnkey price for solar in the nation declined by around 17.4% between 2016 and 2017 – and by 79% over the last seven years. By the end of last year, cumulative installed Lebanese PV capacity reached 35.4 MW.
Uzbekistan’s steeplechase towards renewable energy
French oil group Total has reached agreement with national utility Uzbekenergo to build a large-scale PV plant in Samarkand province. However, construction on a 100 MW project by China’s Syngyes has been suspended.
Floating PV to splashdown in Vietnam
A 47.5 MW floating solar power plant is being planned by Vietnamese hydropower producer Da Mi, a unit of Vietnamese power utility Electricity of Vietnam (EVN), at one of its water reservoirs in the south of the country. The Asian Development Bank is now considering financing the project. Meanwhile, Sharp has announced the completion of a 48 MW ground-mounted PV facility in the Eastern Asian country.
SirajPower develops 50 MW under DEWA’s Shams Dubai initiative
The UAE-based solar company has signed a 15 year lease for a 1.8 MW rooftop project on two warehouses of Apparel Group, a global fashion and lifestyle retail conglomerate.
Ienova secures another long-term solar PPA in Mexico
The Mexican gas and electricity provider will sell solar power to Canadian multinational bank Novascotia under a 15-year PPA. The electricity will be provided by the solar plant portfolio the company is developing in the Mexican states of Sonora and Baja California.
Encavis buys 80% stake in 300 MW solar project in southern Spain
The Talayuela plant will be built by British developer Solarcentury in the region of Extremadura and will sell electricity under a PPA contract.
Ecoprogetti supplies 250 MW production line for Moroccan bifacial module fab
The line, supplied by the Italian PV equipment provider, will produce glass-glass and bifacial modules. Almaden’s factory is expected to begin manufacturing activities in late October.
Japan to add 17 GW of new solar by the end of 2020 – Fitch
The additonal capacity is expected to come from the backlog of projects under Japan’s FIT mechanism and would raise cumulative installations to over 65 GW. In the period 2021-2027, however, the industry is expected to grow at a considerably lower pace, due to grid constraints, land availability and lower prices coming from auctions.
