Conergy will build five solar farms totaling 40 megawatts (MW) for Primrose Solar, which is backed by financial investors York Capital Management and Pioneer Point Partners LLP.
A pipeline of four more solar parks with an additional capacity of 50 MW is in the development phase.
Conergy developed the portfolio, which totals nine solar farms representing 90 MW, together with UK partner Camborne Energy. As part of the sale of the pipeline, Conergy secured the exclusive engineering, procurement and construction rights (EPC rights) for the entire portfolio of solar power plants. As the general contractor, Conergy will be responsible for the project management process, which includes planning, design, construction and component supply as well as the maintenance and management of the solar farms. The solar power plants earn revenue from power purchase agreements (PPAs) at a typical rate of 5 pence per kilowatt hour, 33% of the average UK retail price of electricity.
Conergy's Gorski: "Conergy to enter the project development and funding business."
"This is the largest order Conergy has ever secured in the UK – and it is just the start," said Alexander Gorski, COO and CEO Europe at Conergy. "With Conergy's new owner Kawa, we are stronger than ever. Our solid balance sheet enables us to grow our share in the development business and provide financing solutions for solar projects – with operations and maintenance support offered as well. We continue to see strong demand for solar farm development and construction in the UK and other European countries, as well as opportunities to increase these activities in the high-growth Asian and American markets. Conergy has expansion plans for all of these regions."
Three of the power plants in the portfolio will be located in county of Dorset in the South of England. The others will be built close to Great Yarmouth, Norfolk in Eastern England, and not far from the Welsh capital Cardiff. Altogether the farms are forecast to around 38,100 megawatt hours (MWh) of clean energy annually and supply 11,500 homes in the UK, avoiding approximately 16,400 tons of harmful CO2 emissions per year. All of the sites are on agricultural land and will not be visible to the general public. Panels will be mounted on elevated racks to enable sheep to graze underneath, increasing the land's productivity.
Robert Goss, MD Conergy UK said: "As solar scales to become a more significant player in the UK energy mix, new types of investors are entering the market looking for bankable products. Conergy's partnership with Camborne Energy has delivered a portfolio of plants in the right locations with predictable long-term returns based on high-quality design and build. This approach is ideal for long-term investors and should attract more capital to the growing utility-scale segment."
