Albanian utility KESH has built a 5.1 MW ground-mounted solar park at its hydropower plant in Vau i Dejës. The company will operate the PV facility in combination with hydropower production.
The 500 kW floating array was built with floating membranes supplied by Norwegian specialist Ocean Sun. The project is expected to continue its second implementation phase during the second half of 2021, when three more 500 kW floating units will be installed.
Land scarcity and renewables prices have been long considered significant hurdles for renewable developments in the hilly Balkans. Still, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) sees solid opportunities in floating PV on public dams, PV modules on rooftops, and renewables projects in landfills and disused coal mines.
Photovoltaics could offer peak generation at times of the year when the nation needs it most, says IRENA, but plenty will have to be done, including upgrading an aging grid and training an army of installers and building energy auditors.
The French developer will sell 70% of the power generated by the facility to Albanian power utility Operatori i Shpërndarjes së Energjisë Elektrike SH.A. (OSHEE) under a 15-year PPA and the remaining portion will be sold on the spot market.
The Italian gas contractor started to develop three green hydrogen projects in the southern Italian region of Apulia and has identified land for potential projects in Albania and Morocco.
The country’s third large-scale solar plant will be built near Durrës, a port city on the Adriatic Sea in western Albania.
Korporata Elektroenergjetike Shqiptare began development of the €13.9 million facility in December 2018. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is considering lending €9.5 million to a project which it is said would help reduce the electric company’s reliance on hydro revenues.
Norway’s Statkraft is building a 2 MW floating PV array, first announced a year and a half ago, at its 72 MW hydropower plant in Albania’s Elbasan region. Norwegian floating PV specialist Ocean Sun has agreed to supply tech for the €2 million plant.
The project was awarded to French developer Voltalia. The plant will be located in the Karavasta area, in the centre of the country.
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