Protergia S.A, an energy company in Greece, has flipped the switch on three solar farms with a combined capacity of 11.5MW.
The solar parks are located in the regions of Arta, Tanagra and Aktion-Vonitsa.
Incorporating around 39,000 Suntech solar panels and SMA solar inverter technology, the installations are expected to generate approximately 14,600 MWh of solar electricity annually and avoid 7,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions each year. Investment in the projects is understood to be about AUD $29 million.
Solar power is offering Greece so much more than just clean electricity generation – it could also play an important role in the nation’s economic recovery.
Last year we reported on Project Helios (Helios was the personification of the Sun in Greek mythology), an ambitious plan to create a 10 gigawatt (GW) solar PV network throughout Greece that would generate power not only for local consumption, but also for export to other countries. The revenue from this electricity could see Greece’s cash register ring to the tune of 80 billion euros.
In other Suntech related news, according to IMS Research, Suntech Power was the largest supplier of solar panels by shipment volumes in 2011 for the second consecutive year. IMS Research says 2011 also saw Suntech becoming the first supplier to ship over 2 GW of modules in a single year.
While last year was particularly challenging for solar module makers and saw a number of companies shut their doors, others such as Suntech continued their ascent.
“2011 claimed a number of victims, but nearly all of the top-ten suppliers grew their shipments and collectively they accounted for nearly half of total industry shipments”, commented Sam Wilkinson, Senior Market Analyst at IMS Research and author of the company’s latest quarterly report on the industry.
