Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Solar Energy in Spain

Continued from Page 6

Last December the company connected the Monte Alto Solar Field to the grid, the largest installation of its kind in Spain, and one of the largest in the world. It consists of a field of standard PV panels on trackers (which leads to 30 percent greater efficiency), spread out over a long disused agricultural field in the southern part of the state of Navarra, about an hour south of Pamplona.

This is the latest in these fields, known as ‘huertas,’ or gardens, in Spanish. The 9.5 MW facility at Milagro actually has more than 750 owners, investors, from across Spain, each of whom owns one or two of the panels and trackers and receives payments from the electric utility.

Most Spaniards live in apartment buildings and share rooftops, so the options for investing in solar power are limited. “This way they can have the same opportunities as the rest of the world even if they don’t have their own roof,” says Miguel Arrarás, general director of Acciona Solar. There are ten such fields in Spain, though Milagro is the largest so far, and three more about to enter construction phase.

The region of Navarra (where Milagro is located), with local government support, has become a veritable center of renewable energy, with wind turbines arching over the rolling hills and solar fields stretching across open spaces. The region has more than twenty times the watt peak of PV per inhabitant compared to that of Spain, and nearly double that of Germany, world solar leader. This commitment has led to 70% of Navarra’s electricity generated from wind and solar alone.

Because of this, Navarra – and Acciona’s solar fields – have become a perfect site to evaluate the entire system. “We’re testing 30 different kinds of panels,” says Arrarás. “We also have data on the effects of shadows, fog, everything. We have an agreement with two universities just to analyze this data.” He continues, “This is also the perfect place to evaluate what the effect is on the entire grid when, say, there are clouds, because of the high concentration of solar power here.”

The company’s operations are housed in a zero-emissions building on the outskirts of Pamplona. The building’s design incorporates techniques that reduce energy needs by 52 percent from a typical building, such as natural light and carefully placed shading. The remaining energy is produced with PV cells, solar water heating, and finally a small amount of biodiesel. The investments will pay off in ten years, according to Arrarás. Due to the company’s experience, Acciona Solar is also researching ways to improve and promote these high performance buildings.

Acciona is poised to begin construction on a PV solar field in Portugal that will comprise nearly 50 MW – five times the size of Milagro.

Looking ahead
The Spanish government continues to promote the investment and expansion of both photovoltaic and solar thermal power in the country, with a goal of 400 MW installed power for PV and 500 MW for solar by 2010. This is still only a fraction of the country’s total power use and total renewable production.

The government, however, is committed to advancing the sector. The new building code of 2006 requires increased energy efficiency and an obligation to meet a significant part of the hot water demand with passive solar heating, and the Plan of Renewable Energies sets lofty goals of 5 million square feet of solar collectors by 2010. They new Royal Decree approved in May 2007 improves the feed-in tariffs for both solar thermal and PV facilities. Some experts believe that these developments could lead Spain to become the second largest PV market in the world in 2007. Spanish companies and research institutions plan to continue to be at the forefront of the growing global field.

Says Javier Anta, president of the Spanish Photovoltaic Industry Association, “The solar industry will be a major part of the government’s goal of 20 percent renewable energy by 2020. Despite the fact that solar is only a small percentage of renewable power, it’s grown more than 100 percent a year in the past few years,” and in fact the sector grew 200 percent in 2006. Continues Anta, “We’re facing a grand challenge: consolidating that which we’ve achieved so far, setting the framework for future development, and creating a sector that makes our country proud.