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First stage completed on floating solar plant in Billings Reservoir, Brazil

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First stage completed on floating solar plant in Billings Reservoir, Brazil
(photo courtesy EMAE)

São Paulo, Brazil Governor Tarcísio de Freitas has delivered the first stage of implementation of the Araucária floating photovoltaic plant in the Billings Reservoir, the largest floating solar plant in the country.

The project was developed by Metropolitan Water and Energy Company (EMAE), in partnership with private partner KWP Energia.

The plant has 7 MW peak installed power, with 5 MW of connection power and photovoltaic panels installed on high-density polyethylene floats. With 10,500 plates on the water surface and an initial investment of BRL30 million (US$6.0 million), the solar array can produce up to 10 GWh per year. Power generation will begin immediately after issuance of the operating license by the Environmental Company of the State of São Paulo (Cetesb).

Completion is scheduled for the end of 2025, with the delivery of another 75 MW of renewable energy and an investment of BRL450 million ($90.3 million).

“This plant is the realization of what we are pursuing in the state of São Paulo in relation to clean energy, energy transition and decarbonization. Our energy plan has a horizon until 2050 and, last year alone, we prospected more than R$20 billion in energy projects that focus on the circular economy. This means using clean energy to provide quality services combined with the environment and what, in fact, sustainability means,” stated Natália Resende, secretary of Environment, Infrastructure and Logistics.

The floating solar plant will be the largest in the country to operate commercially in the distributed generation modality, with generators located close to consumption centers. The plant’s production will be deducted from the electricity consumption of the plant’s customers, through compensation in electricity bills.

Billings Reservoir supplies the 889 MW Henry Borden hydroelectric facility as part of the Cantareira water system. Compared to the total area of ​​the Billings Reservoir, the space occupied by the plant is less than 0.1%.