When complete, the facility will generate 45 million kilowatt-hours of clean solar electricity per year, sufficient to power around 14,000 homes or approximately 25 percent of the estimated 55,400 households in the city of Oxford, UK.
This is the fourth project to be executed in the UK under a First Solar and Belectric joint venture, announced in 2013. The JV has already constructed solar farms in Wiltshire and East Anglia and is expecting to reach a total capacity of 80 MW across the country. The farms will generate almost 80 million kWh of clean energy per year, while displacing an estimated 35,000 tons of greenhouse gases each year.
“This latest project is a clear indication of the fact that dramatic efficiency gains and increased cost competitiveness, particularly those driven by First Solar, have created an undeniable tipping point for solar power, not only in the UK but around the world” said Christopher Burghardt, Vice President for Europe at First Solar. “There is no doubt that, thanks to the UK's renewable energy roadmap, solar PV will help reinforce the country's efforts to address its need for sustained energy independence.”
Toddington Harper, CEO of Belectric UK, added that the project will be the UK's largest and most technologically advanced solar energy plant, incorporating the latest innovations from both companies.
More than 483,000 First Solar modules will be used to power the facility. Belectric will be responsible for the construction and Balance-of-Systems (BoS) requirements. The project will comply with stringent sustainability standards designed to minimize its impact in the local environment, and to support biodiversity initiatives. The land on which the solar farm is to be constructed will remain in use for grazing by sheep, as was the case before the project was announced.
First Solar and Belectric share a longstanding relationship that has lasted more than a decade. In 2013, they constructed Europe's largest thin film PV power plant in Templin, Germany. By bringing together industry-leading capabilities and technologies, the two groups have established a joint venture to realize selected utility-scale PV projects in Europe, North Africa and the United States.
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