Suntech Power photovoltaic production site. (Credit: Suntech Power Holdings Co.)Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. Will be supplying 132,000 Suntech Ve and Vd panels for the largest solar power plant in Latin America, a 30MW plant in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico. The panels will be installed by Martifer Solar, a Portugal-based fully-integrated solar company, on a 100-hectare (approx. 247 acres) site. Owned by Corporacion Aura Solar, the project is being developed by Gauss Energia, a leading Mexican energy project developer focused on renewable energy.
The project has strong financial support from Mexican local development bank NAFIN, and from the International Finance Corporation. It is Mexico’s first utility-scale solar project with a Power Purchase Agreement from Mexico’s federal power company.
E.L. McDaniel, Managing Director of Suntech America, said, “We are very excited to supply the panels for the largest solar field in Latin America. With Mexico’s excellent sunlight and strong renewable energy demand, we expect to see excellent growth of PV in the region.”
Henrique Rodrigues, CEO of Martifer Solar, said, “The construction of Latin America’s largest PV plant confirms our best expectations for 2013. This is an emblematic project for Martifer Solar, in a region that, due to its irradiation characteristics, finds solar electricity as a viable and more competitive alternative, when compared with non-renewable energy sources. We consider Mexico as a key market in Martifer Solar’s internationalization strategy.”
Hector Olea, CEO of Gauss Energia, said, “Aura Solar is the first project of a larger initiative that aims to become a platform to develop utility-scale PV facilities in Mexico. With Mexico’s solar potential expected to reach around 2,000 MW by 2020, Aura Solar has broken ground in the PV sector, and it is paving the way for future projects in the field. We are quite satisfied to have worked with Suntech and Martifer on this project.”
The plant will have a production capacity of 82 GWh/year, equivalent to offsetting more than 60,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year. The plant’s construction is scheduled to be completed in August 2013.
