Solar park under Italian sun

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SENS Italia builds 17 MWp for KGAL

The site is a 23-hectare former quarry in Montecchio Emilia, Italy. Over the coming months, SENS Italia will build a 17 MWp solar park on this extensive site, which will supply the region with approximately 25,000 MWh of regenerative energy per year. Shining for up to ten hours a day during the summer months, the Italian sun provides the perfect reason for expanding the country’s renewable energy production.

SENS Italia makes the most of the sun

Development work was incredibly fast and highly focused. Progress raced from the initial meeting to contract conclusion in only four weeks. For this, Iqony Sens owes particular thanks to the legal representatives involved, DWF (for Iqony Sens) and Orrick (for KGAL), for their positive support. “We were once again delighted by the professional and extremely rapid preparation of the project by the team at Iqony Sens,” said Michael Ebner, Managing Director Sustainable Infrastructure of KGAL Investment Management GmbH & Co. KG. For Iqony Sens and KGAL, the project represents a further continuation of their many years of partnership. They have already worked successfully together, notably in Italy and Spain.

Iqony Sens is the developer and EPC partner for the project, which is due on site at the backfilled former quarry in northern Italy in the first quarter of 2022, with completion planned for the end of the same year. The solar experts at the Italian Iqony Sens subsidiary are responsible for the development of the project, the implementation of the turnkey solar park and its ongoing operation. This includes the management and feed-in of the energy into the regional grid and the subsequent O&M services.

Once the solar park is connected to an existing substation in northern Italy, the Emilia Romagna region gains from the 25,000 MWh of electricity it produces annually. This PV park alone saves 6,250 tonnes of climate-damaging CO₂ per year.

Iqony Sens wins feed-in tariff in auction

This PV system has been a particular success for our Italian colleagues and the entire Iqony Sens team. Iqony Sens won a feed-in tariff for this 17 MWp project in an auction, which confirms the quality of the solar company’s performance as a project developer. To date, this is one of the few PV systems of this size to reach the construction stage in Italy with the help of a feed-in tariff.

Another 3 GWp by 2025

However, the current project in Montecchio Emilia is just the beginning: in the next few years, another construction phase is planned to follow, as well as several other projects in the surrounding region with a total capacity of around 60 MWp. Thanks to the Italian sun, a total of approximately 100,000 MWh will be produced per year in the future.

“With this project pipeline, we are getting closer to expanding our first gigawatt in Italy,” explains Sarah Herresthal, Managing Director of SENS Italia. “I am unbelievably proud of the whole team, who have worked every day to drive forward the expansion of renewables in Italy. This is another step on our way to our objective of adding a further 3 GWp of capacity across the whole of Italy by 2025,” she adds, looking forward to the upcoming projects.

Symbolic Image: Daniel Tudor (solar park in Szöd, Hungary)