Isolux Corsán has successfully finished building and commissioning three solar PV plants on a budget of approximately €40 million. They are currently considered to be the largest in the United Kingdom, with a total installed capacity of 15 MW.
The three arrays are located in Langform, Churchtown and Manor, all of which are in Cornwall, where 22,000 crystalline modules are set on fixed arrays, each with 5 MW installed capacity. The company delivered them after completing their engineering, procurement and construction (EPC). Development and investment was arranged by Banco Santander and a local partner.
This project is Isolux Corsán's first photovoltaic venture in the UK. It was rolled out in less than ten weeks. The link-up with the Western Power Distribution electricity grid was established before the latest change in regulations this summer, which reduced PV feed-in tariffs in the UK. The Group has already shown its ability to complete major infrastructure projects in record time. It built the 72-MW Rovigo PV power plant, the largest in Europe, in just eight months and has installed a total capacity of 290 MW around the globe.
Largest city centre array
Elsewhere in the UK, three leading Yorkshire companies launched the largest city centre PV system in the UK at Clarence Dock Multi-Storey Car Park in Leeds on Monday.
Town Centre Securities PLC, Rex Procter & Partners and GMI Renewable Energy Group have combined to install the 128 KWp system, which will supply around 15 percent of the car park’s electricity and avoid 55,000 kg in carbon dioxide emissions a year.
The solar PV system was chosen for a number of its unique attributes, including non-penetrating mounts, greater installed system size, easy mobility and simple maintenance. The project used the existing waterproof car park surface, which was painted white to reflect the sun’s energy.
“The addition of the solar system on our car park links in perfectly with our approach of striving for new innovative ways to improve our business within a sustainable environment. Renewable energy schemes are very much part of our business model at TCS and TCCP,” commented Ben Ziff, Managing Director of Town Centre Car Parks (TCCP).
Mr Ziff added: “We have recently set up two new businesses, TCS Renewable Energy and TCS Solar Limited, and these will be used to identify assets where TCS PLC wants to invest in renewable energy on existing real estate and car park assets already owned by the firm”.
The renewable energy system at Clarence Dock will generate around 2,450,000 Kwh of electricity over the 25-year feed-in tariff period, making it an excellent investment both financially and environmentally. A total income of €1.44 million will be generated from the feed-in tariff and save around €288,000 in electricity purchase costs, based on current energy prices.
[Editor's correction: The Clarence Dock car park array is currently the UK's largest rooftop city centre array. The largest city centre array is however the solar installation on the facade of the CIS Tower in Manchester. The 351 KWp array was commissioned six years ago and installed by Solarcentury.]
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