Talayuela solar project is a 300MW photovoltaic (PV) solar park located in Cáceres city in the Extremadura region of Spain. It is one of the biggest solar power plants operating in Europe.
The project was initially developed by Kompa Solaire SASU and Genia Global Energy Solutions. It was acquired by Encavis (80%) and Solarcentury (20%) in 2018.
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Norway-based hydropower company Statkraft acquired Solarcentury, which had taken on the commercial and technical management of the solar project, in November 2020.
The project reached financial closure in November 2019, and construction began in January 2020.
Commissioned in January 2021, the Talayuela solar project can generate enough electricity to power 150,000 homes and offset 165,000t of carbon dioxide emissions a year.
The project created more than 1,000 direct and indirect jobs for the region, including 400 direct jobs during the peak construction period.
Talayuela solar project location
Talayuela solar project is located on 822ha of land in the Cerro Verde area of Talayuela, Cáceres.
The site receives 1,850 hours of sunlight a year, which can support the production of 570GW of energy annually.
The site includes 320ha of land for the protection of the natural environment and wildlife, as well as 100ha that is dedicated to reforestation with 1,600 Holm Oak trees.
Talayuela solar project details
The Talayuela solar project comprises 830,000 solar panels installed on 15,000 single-axis trackers.
The solar panels are anchored to the ground to reduce the impact of such large-scale installation on the land while avoiding the need for concrete foundations.
The project includes 144-cell polycrystalline CS3U-P KuMax modules, ensuring nominal loss of power in cell connections. The modules offer better shading tolerance and a high PV USA Test Conditions (PTC) rating of up to 92.64%.
The PV modules ensure lower hot spot temperature and reduce micro-cracks. The panels also resist heavy snow loads and wind speeds.
A 400/30kV substation with a 350MVA power transformer forms a major component of the plant. A 21.4km long simple circuit 400kV ‘duplex’ power line transmits power from the solar plant to the Arañuelo Substation. The substation is owned by Red Eléctrica Española (REE), the national energy grid operator of Spain.
The plant will transmit 4,300GWh of power for ten years under a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) signed by Encavis. The project was expected to generate approximately €25m ($28m) of annual sales from the first full year of operation.
Financing for Talayuela solar project
Talayuela solar project was developed with an estimated investment of €225m ($250m). The European Investment Bank (EIB) invested €76.5m ($84.7m), and the project secured a total funding of €165m ($190m) from EIB and Deutsche Bank. The EIB facility is supported by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI).
The developers also secured €54.8m ($61.2m) in funding from NatWest and HSBC UK for the construction of the Talayuela and Cabrera solar projects. The banking facilities include a €27.7m ($30.9m) trade loan from NatWest and €27.1m ($30.3m) guarantees line from HSBC UK, supported by UK Export Finance.
Contractors involved
Prodiel was contracted to build the project and interconnecting infrastructure under the balance of system (BOS) format.
Canadian Solar was contracted to supply solar modules for the project. Pexapark acted as the PPA advisor.
