METKA EGN to complete 75MW by ROC deadline

METKA EGN has announced EPC contract wins for 75MW of new UK projects, the largest being a 20MW storage project, as the company restates its commitment to the UK market.

The contractor is working on six solar PV projects for Lightsource and Canadian Solar which are scheduled to be completed in time for the 31 March 1.2 ROC deadline.

Speaking to Solar Power Portal about the company’s ongoing work in the UK, METKA EGN director Lefteris Pliakos explained that the projects represented a continuation of the company’s loyalty to the UK.

“It is the third year that we are based in the UK and every year we are delivering a significant number of projects. We are dedicated to the UK market. We are not here to go, we are here to stay – and chase any opportunities that can come up in [upcoming] years,” he said.

As well as the solar PV developments, an energy storage project will be completed for Hazel Capital, which will see 40 LG Chem batteries installed alongside gas/diesel generation assets in Newcastle-under-Lyme.

The project, named Noriker Power Staunch, won a two year firm frequency response (FFR) contract with National Grid, which is expected to deliver c. £2.6 million in revenues for each of the two years contracted.

The FFR contract is estimated to represent about 70% of total revenues in each of the first two years of the project’s life.

In the December 2015 T-4 auction it also won a 15-year capacity market contract, which will begin in 2019. The contract price is £18,000/MW per year at 2014/15 prices and is therefore subject to be inflated by RPI for the intervening period.

Further revenues will be accrued from Triad payments, where the installation will be used to avoid peak transmission network use charges, and electricity sales generated effectively as a by-product of creating the revenues from FFR and Triads.

This energy storage project follows the successful completion of a larger development in Puerto Rico, where METKA EGN delivered a 57.65MWp solar farm alongside 20MW storage capacity. According to Pliakos, building on this experience will be a key focus for the company’s activity in the UK post-subsidy, as well as chasing opportunities for private power purchase agreements.

“Generally our strategy is to look for projects even after 31 March. We are looking into two directions [private PPA and storage], it doesn't seem to fully work immediately after 31 March but we are confident enough that projects like this will come up in the next year,” he said.

For more information about proposed and operational storage projects, the new UK Battery Storage Project Database report from Solar Media market research provides comprehensive details across more than 200 battery storage projects. For more information please click here or contact us at [email protected]