From Daily Fusion

Wirsol Solar AG, an international solar energy provider, headquartered in Germany, has started with the construction of the biggest solar park of the Caribbean in the Dominican Monte Plata province. The solar park will have a total capacity of 64.14 megawatts (MW); the first phase of construction is to be completed with 32.14 MW and go on the grid by the end of the year.

Due to our many years of experience, both the local population and the Dominican government have significant trust in us,” says Markus Wirth, Member of Wirsol’s Board of Directors. “President Danilo Medina Sánchez has personally awarded the country’s first power purchase agreement to us,” Wirth continues. Monte Plata is the Dominican Republic’s first solar park.

Owing to the large increase in population in the last few years to over 10 million inhabitants and the rapid economic growth in the region, the Caribbean island nation´s demand for electricity has risen dramatically. In the Dominican Republic energy still comes primarily from expensive fossil fuels such as diesel and gas. The large solar power station is a cost-effective and sustainable alternative for the local electricity supply.

Irradiation in the Caribbean is about 50% higher than in Germany, yet up to now the sun has barely been used as a resource in the region. “The government provides indirect support for projects with renewable energies through a favorable tax treatment,” the consul of the Dominican Republic in Madrid, Frank Bencosme explains.

Wirsol has met the high environmental regulations that comply with European standards. With its UN-registration as an emissions-reducing power station, the plant has received an official quality seal for sustainable development from Geneva. Already upon completion of the first construction phase, up to 33,000 tons of CO2 emissions a year can be avoided.

For the large-scale Monte Plata project, Wirsol was able to rely on an excellent network of contractors from the Dominican Republic. In the future the technical management as well as new projects in the region will be implemented by the local subsidiary company Wirsol Caribbean.

PHOTO: The installation of solar panels at Monte Plata solar park. (Credit: Wirsol)

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http://dailyfusion.net/2013/09/construction-starts-on-the-largest-solar-park-in-the-caribbean-19909/