SunPower and K6 sign agreement to build two solar power plants in Puglia, Italy. SunPower Corp. and K6 S.a.S. announced they signed an agreement under to build two 1-megawatt photovoltaic (PV) solar power plants in the Puglia region, Italy, by August 2010.
The two plants are located in Casamassima and Conversano. The plants will generate clean, renewable solar power for the local grid, and at the same time contribute to Italy's national electric grid.
Luciano Di Filippo of K6 commented: "The cooperation with SunPower is consistent with K6's strategy to develop highly efficient solar parks. SunPower's most efficient tracker will allow us to achieve optimal energy production, meeting our target financial model in the time period expected and helping to drive renewable energy."
SunPower will equip the two plants with SunPower panels, the most efficient solar panels commercially available, and the proprietary SunPower(R) T20 Tracker technology. The Tracker delivers up to 30 percent more energy than fixed-tilt systems because it follows the sun during the day. It only requires half the land area to produce the same amount of energy as conventional dual-axis trackers. To minimize the environmental impact, the foundation will be non-ground penetrating, pre-cast concrete foundation. The SunPower TMAC Advanced Tracker Controller Real-time provides remote monitoring and control.
Luca Bandini, general manager of SunPower Italia stated: "We are delighted to expand our portfolio of Italian solar power plant projects with these two latest parks we are designing and building for K6. SunPower has leveraged its global power plant experience to offer cost saving enhancements to its T20 Tracker technology, including remote monitoring and control capabilities that enable seamless integration with power plant supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems."
Earlier this month, SunPower announced a definitive agreement to acquire leading European solar power plant developer SunRay Renewable Energy. SunRay has offices in Europe and the Middle East, including a principle project office in Rome. After the purchase, SunPower will acquire a project pipeline of solar PV projects totaling more than 1,200 megawatts (MW) in Italy, France, Israel, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Greece.
