Renewables
Mainstream grows footprint in Vietnam with acquisition of 80% of solar portfolio
Mainstream Renewable Power, the global wind and solar company, has signed an agreement to acquire an 80 per cent shareholding in Technology and Development Joint Stock Company Limited (D&T), which is developing a 405 MW portfolio of solar projects in the Dak Nong province of central Vietnam.
Renewable Diesel Project Picks up Support in Louisiana
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards and PBF Chalmette Refinery Manager Steven Krynski recently jointly announced that the concept of a renewable refinery conversion from an idled refinery unit at the Chalmette complex has begun the study process of progressing this renewable project.
ACCIONA begins construction on first Solar PV Farm in US
ACCIONA has begun construction of the 317MWp Fort Bend Solar Farm outside Houston (Texas), its first photovoltaic plant in the United States. The project aims to kick off a period of rapid growth for ACCIONA, which plans to double its renewable energy capacity in the US with the addition of more than 1.2GW MW of solar photovoltaic energy by the end of 2023.
Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and Greengate Power announce construction of Travers Solar
Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) and Greengate Power Corporation (Greengate) are pleased to announce that construction has begun on Travers Solar, the largest solar photovoltaic project ever constructed in Canada. Travers Solar represents CIP’s first investment in Canada and is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2022.
Lightsource bp expands Spanish portfolio
Lightsource bp, a global leader in the development and management of solar energy projects, continues its rapid expansion across Europe with another project pipeline acquisition in Spain from Grupo Jorge’s energy arm totalling 703MW.
Iberdrola commissions the Ceclavín solar plant and reaches 1,000 MW operational photovoltaic capacity in Spain
To mark International Sun Day, which is observed to raise awareness of solar energy as a renewable energy source to drive the energy transition, in coexistence with biodiversity and the environment, Iberdrola has commissioned the 328-MW Ceclavín photovoltaic plant in Extremadura. The project is being commissioned following an investment of 250 million euros, which has given a significant boost to local employment. At peak times during the construction stage, more than 1,140 workers were employed on the project, 60 % of them from nearby towns and other places in Extremadura.
Repsol unveils Kappa, its first PV solar farm
Repsol's first PV solar farm, Kappa, has been officially opened today. Located in the town of Manzanares, in the central Spanish province of Ciudad Real, the farm represents an investment of €100 million and boasts a total installed capacity of 126.6 MW distributed across three plants. Two of these, Perseo Fotón I and Perseo Fotón II, are already operational, with a combined capacity of 90.5 MW. The third plant, Perseo Fotón III, is still under development. It will add another 36.1 MW when it comes online.
Construction starts on Sofia
RWE Renewables has started construction works on its large offshore North Sea windfarm.
Mocean Energy unveils Blue X wave energy prototype
Mocean Energy unveiled their Blue X wave energy prototype which will take to the seas in Orkney next month. The 20-metre long, 38-tonne wave machine has been fabricated wholly in Scotland and will be deployed at the European Marine Energy Centre’s Scapa Flow test site for sea trials initially, and then later deployed at EMEC’s large scale Billia Croo test site this summer. Next year, the wave pioneers plan to connect the device to a subsea battery which will be used to power a remotely operated autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV).
Macquarie closes €90 million debt investment in Spanish CSP portfolio
Macquarie Asset Management has today announced a €90 million debt investment in a portfolio of concentrated solar power (CSP) plants in southern Spain. The 120 MW capacity portfolio is comprised of the 20 MW Gemasolar tower plant, the world’s first solar plant to achieve 24-hour operations, and two 50 MW parabolic trough solar parks, Valle 1 and Valle 2. The portfolio, located in Andalusia, produces enough green energy to power the equivalent of more than 84,000 Spanish households and avoids 126,000 tonnes of carbon emissions every year.
Blue Elephant Energy and EnBW sign long-term power purchase agreements for PV projects in Spain
The Hamburg-based operator of solar and wind power plants Blue Elephant Energy AG (BEE) and EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG (EnBW) entered into long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) for a 150-megawatt solar park project in the Spanish region of Andalusia. Both parties have agreed not to disclose any details about the economic terms of the electricity price, which has been fixed for 10 years.
Masdar wins Uzbekistan solar tenders
The Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Uzbekistan has large ambitions with solar power. It has a broad program to construct solar PV plants with a total capacity of 1 gigawatt (GW).
NextChem wins FEED Contract for TotalEnergies’ Renewable Project
Maire Tecnimont SPA recently announced that its subsidiary NextChem has won a contract from TotalEnergies for the purpose of completing Front-End Engineering Design duties for the developing renewable production activities at TotalEnergies’ Grandpuit complex in France.
First floating solar plant in Albania starts commercial operations
Statkraft, Europe’s largest renewable energy generator, in cooperation with Norwegian supplier Ocean Sun has started commercial operations at the first unit of its floating solar project in Albania, further contributing to the country’s renewable energy journey.
Largest yet for the Philippines
Siemens Gamesa has secured an order to supply, install and commission 32 turbines in the Philippines.
bp boosts its renewables business in the US with 9GW solar acquisition to be developed by Lightsource bp
bp reached an agreement today to purchase 9GW of solar development projects in the US from independent US solar developer 7X Energy. The acquisition represents a significant step towards bp’s target of growing its net developed renewable generating capacity to 20GW by 2025 and aim to increase this to 50GW by 2030. The deal will also grow bp’s renewables pipeline from 14GW to 23GW. These assets will be developed through bp’s 50-50 solar joint venture Lightsource bp, a global leader in solar energy, applying Lightsource bp’s capabilities to accelerate bp’s renewables targets.
Ministry of Energy awards tender for construction of 457 MW solar energy plant
The Ministry of Energy of Uzbekistan is pleased to announce the Winning Bidder of the tender for the construction of a 457 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant, in the Sherabad district of the Surkhandarya region, has been awarded to Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC (Masdar). The President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev formally launched the implementation phase of the project on a visit to the site on 1 June 2021.
AlpinSolar: construction starts on largest alpine solar plant in Switzerland
Over the next four months, Axpo and IWB will build the largest alpine solar plant in Switzerland at the Muttsee dam. Following construction approval from the local municipality of Glarus Süd, the first components were transported to the dam yesterday. AlpinSolar will generate 3.3 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually, half of which will be in the winter months. Supermarket chain Denner has concluded a 20-year power purchase agreement for the electricity produced by the plant.
Nacero Awards FEED Contract to Bechtel for GTG plant
Nacero of Houston has awarded a Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) contract to Bechtel for a proposed natural gas to gasoline (GTG) plant in Penwell, Texas. This multibillion-dollar facility has an anticipated capacity for 115,000 barrels per day and is believed to the first gasoline manufacturing facility to include carbon capture, its storage, and 100% renewable power.
Solar: floating on water
As the latest alternative to rooftop solar-powered systems or ground mounted solar systems, floating photovoltaic (FPV) technology can utilise space otherwise wasted.
Mayflower Next Up in Massachusetts
Following on from Vineyard Wind’s final approval, Mayflower Wind is next up seeking permits at the start of the so-called “offshore wind era”.
ACWA Power leads South Africa's largest renewable energy project Redstone CSP to financial close
ACWA Power, a leading Saudi developer, investor and operator of power generation and water desalination plants in 13 countries and the lead shareholder in the Redstone concentrated solar power (CSP) plant, announced the commencement of construction on the 100 MW Redstone project following achievement of financial close. At ZAR 11.6 billion total investment, the Redstone project is the largest renewable energy investment in South Africa to date.
Haldor Topsoe Signs on to Supply Technology for Renewable Refinery in Kansas
Seaboard Energy of Kansas has chosen Haldor Topsoe’s HydroFlex technology for its upcoming renewable diesel facility in Hugoton, Kansas.
Atlas Renewable Energy executes its second finance project in Brazil
Atlas Renewable Energy, a leading renewable energy company in the Americas, announced today that it has obtained a USD 150 million loan from IDB Invest, a member of IDB Group, and from DNB Bank ASA (the largest financial services group in Norway) to finance the construction of its Lar do Sol – Casablanca project, a 359MWp solar project to be developed in Brazil that will provide clean energy to Anglo American’s operations in Minas Gerais.
Vineyard wind receives record of decision for first in the nation commercial scale offshore wind project
Vineyard Wind, a joint venture between Avangrid Renewables, a subsidiary of AVANGRID, Inc. (NYSE: AGR), and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), today received the Record of Decision (ROD) from the U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the final major step in the federal review process for the first commercial scale offshore wind farm in the United States.
Amazon renewables drive
Amazon the America multinational technology company, most popular as an online retailer, has been in recent years driving to a more sustainable carbon footprint. In 2019 the enterprise-wide carbon footprint from direct and in-direct operational activities was 51.17 MMT CO2e according to the business’s website.
BP and EnBW target Scotland
BP and EnBW hope to cement their partnership further by taking part in the upcoming ScotWind offshore wind leasing round 4 in Scotland, scheduled for July. The companies have already launched an online portal for the Scottish engineering and supply sector, foreseeing future opportunities for contra..
Equinor acquires Polish renewables company Wento, and its 1.6-gigawatt solar project pipeline
Equinor has completed an agreement to buy 100% of the shares in Polish onshore renewables developer Wento from the private equity firm Enterprise Investors for EUR 91 million in enterprise value, before customary net cash adjustments. The acquisition supports Equinor’s effort to be a leading com..
Iberdrola starts up its first photovoltaic plant in Teruel
Iberdrola is making progress in its plans to lead the energy transition and the recovery of the economy and employment in Spain. After the construction phase, the company has started up its first photovoltaic plant in the province of Teruel.
Uzbekistan gets Saudi push
ACWA Power, a Saudi developer of power generation, signed an implementation agreement with the Ministry of Investments & Foreign Trade, and the Ministry of Energy of Uzbekistan for the development of a 1,500MW windfarm. The proposed 1,500MW windfarm in Karakalpakstan, an autonomous republic situate..
