+ 29.07.2011 + abakus solar installs a new photovoltaic power plant near Swindon in the south west of England. With a capacity of over 4.9 MWp it will be among the largest PV power plants in the UK.

We are very happy to have installed one of the first 5 MWp free field PV power plants in the UK on this very special site and in record time, states Guido Stratenhoff, abakus’s project manager in the UK. This will hopefully be one of many more projects as we hope English politicians might reconsider the benefits of large scale PV power plants in the future.

The opportunity to build the 4.987 kWp power plant was introduced to abakus solar by its UK partner Blue Energy, a renewable energy development and investment company operating in the solar and wind energy sectors. Blue Energy’s joint venture partner, Low Carbon Solar Ltd, sourced the project which is adjacent to the existing 6MW Westmill Wind Farm to the north of Watchfield, a small town in Oxfordshire. The existing wind farm has been generating electricity since 2008 and is able to supply 2,500 households with electric power. The combination of wind and photovoltaic power at this scale makes this site unique in the UK renewable energy sector, explains Christopher Dean, Managing Director of Blue Energy.

The power plant will cover 16 hectares and comprise 21,620 polycrystalline modules manufactured by AU Optronics Corp., a strategic partner of abakus solar and a provider of high quality solar products. The steel-framed mounting system type was supplied by Zimmermann Stalltechnik GmbH. Four PV modules with a south-facing slope angle of 30° are installed on 2.90 meter high racks. Seven central inverters (Sunny Central 630 CP) made by SMA Solar Technology AG convert the photovoltaic direct current into alternating current. A monitoring system produced by skytron provides constant monitoring of the power plant’s performance.

At its peak operating capacity, the plant will generate about 900 kWh/kWp of electricity annually, sufficient to meet the annual electricity needs of 1,300 households.

We are delighted to be working with Blue Energy to develop photovoltaic projects in the UK", says Roland Wigger, Head of Project Development and General Counsel at abakus solar.

abakus solar AG 2011