The 50 MW power plant is the fourth parabolic trough plant to be developed by Solar Millennium in Spain. It is nearly identical in construction with the Andasol 1-3 projects in Andalusia.
At a festive celebration, María Dolores Aguilar, Vice President of the Junta de Extremadura (local government), José Luis Navarro Ribera, Minister of Industry, Energy and Environment of the Junta de Extremadura and Miguel Ángel Gallardo Miranda, the mayor of the city of Villanueva de la Serena today laid the foundation stone for the Ibersol parabolic trough power plant together with representatives of the investors Ferrostaal AG and Solar Millennium AG. Ibersol is to feed power into the Spanish grid as from 2013, and is thus supply some 150,000 people with environmentally friendly electricity.
The 50 MW power plant is the fourth parabolic trough plant to be developed by Solar Millennium in Spain. It is nearly identical in construction with the Andasol 1-3 projects in Andalusia that were likewise developed by the Solar Millennium Group. Given annual direct normal radiation of some 2,080 kWh per square meters, the Extremadura region features excellent conditions for generating solar energy. According to forecasts that were made on the basis of meteorological measurements, the parabolic trough power plant is to generate about 170 million kWh of electricity – this is a little more than the Island of Sylt consumes per year. Compared to modern coal-fired power plants, it is expected to save a total of 150,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year.
Due to thermal storage facilities, the power plant will be able to reliably supply power on demand and also after sun-set. Above all, Ibersol will help cover peak demand times in the Spanish grid in the summer months that is caused by the high energy consumption of air conditioning units in particular. Together with other renewable energy sources, solar-thermal power plants could be able to replace fossil fuel and nuclear power generation in the future. At the moment, some 80 percent of Spain’s energy supply still depends on the import of oil, gas and coal.
In addition to Ferrostaal AG (50%) and Solar Millennium AG (34%), the ExtremaSol Kraftwerks GmbH (16%), a holding company of I.C.M. InvestmentBank-Gruppe, Berlin, also holds an indirect share in the Ibersol power plant project, which is also known under the name of Extremasol 1 in Spain. Negotiations regarding the entry of further investors are already well under way. Solar Millennium and Ferrostaal will also be in charge of building the power plant together with partners.
Even private investors can benefit from the proceeds of this solar-thermal power plant via a closed-end fund. Solar Millennium has entrusted its Solar Millennium Invest AG subsidiary with the sale of this fund, which can be subscribed until it is fully placed. The latest subscription date, however, is 31 December 2012.
