SMA Solar Inverters To Power World’s Largest PV Farm

SMA America has announced its solar inverters are to be used in what will be the world's largest operational solar PV electricity generation facility.

SMA America has announced its solar inverters are to be used in what will be the world’s largest operational solar PV electricity generation facility.

Construction on the 290 MW Agua Caliente solar farm in Yuma County has already commenced, with completion expected to occur in 2014. The massive facility will utilise over 400 of SMA’s Sunny Central 720CP inverters.

The Sunny Central 720CP inverter, which won the Intersolar Award 2010 in the photovoltaics category, is designed for operation in harsh conditions such as Arizona experiences. These units have a nominal AC output at 50 °C of 720kVa and at 25°C, 792 kVa.

“The challenging environmental conditions and high quality expectations of our partners made the Sunny Central 720CP an ideal choice for this groundbreaking solar project,” said Jurgen Krehnke, president and general manager of SMA America. “We are excited to witness the commissioning and start of clean power production.”

Once completed, the 2,400 acre Agua Caliente facility will generate enough electricity to serve the power needs of about 100,000 average homes.

According to SMA, other desert installations using the company’s inverters are in Gila Bend, Arizona, Santa Teresa in New Mexico and Cimarron, also in New Mexico.

SMA inverters are also in use at what is currently the world’s largest PV installation in Sarnia, Ontario; where temperatures are at the opposite end of the spectrum – as low as -10C during the daytime in winter.

While solar panels usually steal the limelight in these major facilities; a crucial component is the solar inverter. This converts the modules’ output from Direct Current (DC) to Alternating Current (AC), suitable for export to the mains grid.

SMA products are in high demand for large scale solar farms and are also generally recognised as the world’s leading brand for small-scale rooftop solar applications. SMA solar inverters are a popular choice in Australian home solar power installations due to their high efficiency and suitability to local conditions.

Last year, parent company  SMA Solar Technology AG celebrated 30 years in the solar industry. Headquartered in Niestetal, near Kassel in Germany, SMA employs a staff of over 5,300 worldwide.

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