2010-08-19 - ABB is delivering - in the record time of just four months - a turnkey 13 megawatt photovoltaic power plant that will produce around 15 percent more energy than alternative designs, making it the most productive and energy-efficient solar power project to date.
The solution provides one of Europe’s largest renewable energy companies, Gestamp Solar, with a complete, large-scale photovoltaic (PV) power plant that will begin producing energy and revenues within just four months of signing the contract.
Currently nearing completion close to the town of La Robla in northwestern Spain, the plant will produce up to 13.3 megawatts of emission-free electric power and avoid the generation of 11,500 tons of CO2 emissions a year.
More than 60,000 solar modules are being installed on the 45 hectare site, which is about 1,000 meters above sea level where irradiation levels and air temperatures are optimal. Production is scheduled to reach full capacity later this month.
Each turnkey ABB solution and the ABB products it contains are engineered and optimized for the requirements of photovoltaic applications
This is the latest deployment of ABB’s uniquely efficient concept for PV power plants. The approach combines a high level of customization, rapid turnkey delivery and system optimization technologies that enable the plants to generate around 15 percent more energy than alternative designs.
The technologies, several of which are patented, include the PLC software that increases tracker accuracy and an automatic switching system that optimizes the number of panels connected to each inverter and enables the plant to harness more energy in all conditions, even during periods of poor light like dawn, dusk and cloudy weather.
ABB’s turnkey solution includes design, engineering, erection, grid connection and commissioning. The electrical, control and automation equipment, as well as the optimization technologies to be deployed, are manufactured by ABB.
Rapid delivery is facilitated by ABB’s well-proven concept of pre-assembled, factory-tested electrical balance of plant modules, and by expertise in project execution, which, in the case of La Robla, has cut weeks off the conventional delivery time to enable the plant to start generating revenues in record time.
The ABB design concept includes powerful tools that calculate the best type of solar panel and solution for a given site and the nuances of its altitude and climate. It also takes into account all the power and automation equipment, which is optimized to increase productivity and reduce power losses. These include high-efficiency inverters, reliable dry type transformers and specially designed control technologies.
ABB has recently supplied a number of power and automation solutions for large-scale photovoltaic and concentrating solar power plants as well as for integrated combined cycle and solar power generation.