Sian Crampsie

Brazil’s latest solar auction has awarded over 800 MW of capacity at ¢8/kWh.

Firms awarded capacity in the competitive auction process include Enel Green Power, Canadian Solar and Conergy. In total, over 11 GW of projects had qualified to bid in the auction.

Enel Green power won three projects totalling 553 MW, While Canadian Solar was awarded five projects totalling 185 MW. SunEdison and Renova were awarded projects totalling 59 MW in the Bahia region, while Conergy won 54 MW across two projects in northeast Brazil.

Enel Green Power will be investing a total of approximately $600 million in the construction of the three new solar facilities that will be completed and enter operation by 2017. It says that the auction has made it the largest solar power developer in Brazil.

"The 818 MW of total capacity won in all photovoltaic auctions launched in Brazil so far, the 700 MW won in wind power auctions and 102 MW won in hydropower auctions in the country since 2010 all offer further validation of our Latin America growth strategy, the strength of which is based on our focus on technologies that are approaching or are at grid parity," said Enel Green Power CEO Francesco Venturini.

Enel’s three projects are the 103 MW Horizonte ME plant, the 158 MW Lapa project and the 292 MW Nova Olinda project.

"Brazil’s auction was one of the most competitive in the world," said Eduardo Abreu, Conergy’s General Manager in Brazil. "Of bids totaling 11 200 MWp, only 833 MWp were approved, making Conergy’s projects among the top 7.5 per cent.

"The team’s technical expertise enabled efficient site selection and project design gave the company a competitive advantage during the auction."

Conergy’s two projects, which will receive a 20-year power purchase agreement in the amount of BRL 296/MWh ($82.57/MWh) indexed to local inflation (IPCA), are located in the northeastern Brazilian state of Paraiba, which has one of the highest irradiance areas in the country. The projects’ proximity to their point of interconnection will make interconnection costs low, said the firm.

"Conergy is excited to enter Brazil’s emerging and fast-growth solar market to grow our global footprint and further our company’s mission to preserve the planet and power the world," said Andrew de Pass, CEO of Conergy.

Conergy is set to begin construction of its two projects in the first quarter of 2017 for interconnection in August 2017.