The companies Iberdrola and Prosolia Energy announced on Tuesday the creation of the largest park of photovoltaic panels in Eruope in São Domingos, in the south of the country.
The Spanish company Iberdrola announced in a communiqué that the environmental permit, issued by the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA), gives him the right to build what is considered “the largest photovoltaic project in Europe and the fifth in the world”with a capacity of 1,200 megawatts (MW).
The park should come into service in 2025, with 2,500 jobs. It will provide “clean, cheap and locally produced energy, sufficient to meet the annual needs of around 430,000 households, a population equivalent to almost twice the city of Porto”.
According to Iberdrola, “the installation, whose connection to the network has been entrusted to the Portuguese operator REN, will make it possible to avoid the consumption of 370 million cubic meters of gas per year, i.e. the volume necessary to produce the same quantity of energy in combined cycle ».
“In terms of biodiversity protection, the land can be used by local herders as pasture for raising sheep and beehives will be installed, which will help improve the stability of ecosystems and increase crop yields. in the surrounding farmland”specify the companies.
In this context, “Planting will be carried out in the area surrounding the infrastructure in order to replace the eucalyptus trees with native trees. »
The project includes a program of socio-economic actions, which includes measures such as vocational training in the field of energy or support for the tourism sector, in addition to the supply of solar energy to neighboring communities, is -He specifies.
In addition, the project also provides for the installation of just under two million photovoltaic panels, distributed in four sub-parks. They will be installed on an area of almost 1,245 hectares, according to the document consulted by the Portuguese press agency Portuguesepartner of EURACTIV, on the occasion of the public consultation.
In its press release published today, Iberdrola alludes to the finalization, at the end of 2022, of several solar parks and affirms that it plans to invest an additional 3 billion euros in wind and solar energy in Portugal over the next few years.
This “package” includes the construction of the Montechoro I and II projects, with a capacity of 37 MW, in Paderne (Albufeira), and the Carregado project, with a capacity of 64 MW, in Alenquer (Lisbon), at the beginning of This year. The Estoi solar power plant (83 MW), in the Algarve region, which also includes an energy storage system, will be operational in 2024.
