UK installer eco NRG Solutions has partnered with Germany’s New Energy for the World to complete a 7MW solar farm in Somerset and start work on a 100MW portfolio across the UK.
The two firms worked with Japanese CIS manufacturer Solar Frontier to complete the 7.15MW Banwell solar farm earlier this year. While eco secured grid and land rights, New Energy worked on planning applications and Solar Frontier supplied the modules.
And the trio have now signed agreements to collaborate on a total of 20 5MW solar farms across the UK, the first of which will be the Greaves solar farm in Kendal, Cumbria.
Construction at Greaves is to commence shortly and the companies’ aim is to have them connected to the grid prior to the 31 March 2016 grace period deadline.
Jon Antoniou, chief executive at eco NRG, said that it was “paramount” to partner with both an experienced EPC in New Energy and a module supplier like Solar Frontier in order to get these projects up and running.
“Solar Frontier’s CIS modules are strongly suited to UK climate conditions, as a result of their behaviour in low light conditions, while their matt-black appearance integrates better into their surroundings compared to the usual blue cell solar panels,” Antoniou added.
A substantial amount of solar is understood to be in the development pipeline in the UK, all of which will be hoped to be built prior to the last ROC deadline on 31 March.