Abengoa Commissions Solacor 1 Solar Plant in Spain

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) -- Spanish renewable energy specialist, Abengoa SA (MCE:ABG) (Seville, Spain) has commissioned the first of two 50-megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) plants at the El Carpio Solar Complex in the province of Cordoba in southern Spain.

The Solacor 1 plant, which is the first jointly owned project to come online from Abengoa and Japanese engineering group, JGC Corporation (TYO:1963) (Yokohama, Japan), is capable of generating enough power for approximately 26,000 homes. It uses more than 60,500 solar panel stretched across an area of 110 hectares and will help offset more than 30,000 tonnes of carbon emissions annually.

The partners are also constructing the 50-MW Solacor 2 plant which they said will be commissioned in the 'near future'. Abengoa will operate both facilities and will retain a 74% stake in the projects. When fully operational the two plants, which cover an area the size of 300 football pitches, will supply enough power for more than 52,000 homes. The plants use parabolic trough technology, which concentrates the sunlight onto receiving tubes filled with heat-absorbing fluid. The heated fluid reaches temperatures of up to 400 degrees Celsius which is then used to heat steam in the 50 MW turbines.

Abengoa is very active in the Spanish solar sector. In September last year, Abengoa's joint venture with Germany's E.ON AG (PINK:EONGY) (Düsseldorf, Germany) commissioned the 50 MW Helioenergy I Ecija, in southern Spain's Andalusia region. The identical Helioenergy II plant was due to come online by the end of 2011 but has been delayed. Like Solacor, the combine plants will provide enough electricity for around 52,000 homes. For additional information see September 12, 2011, article - Abengoa and E.ON Start Up 50-Megawatt Concentrated Solar Power Plant in Spain.

Spain's renewable sector is currently in a state of upheaval as last week saw the new government introduce a temporary halt to all feed-in-tariffs (FiTs) for new renewable energy projects. The affected areas include all new solar photovoltaic (PV), concentrated solar power (CSP), wind, co-generation, biomass, biogas, small hydro and energy from waste (EfW) projects. The government blamed the wider economic crisis and the massive debts accrued by the subsidy systems over recent years. For additional information see February 1, 2012, article - Spain Halts Subsidies for Renewables.

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