Touwsrivier CPV Solar Project

Touwsrivier CPV Solar Project is a 44 MWp (36 MWAC) concentrator photovoltaics (CPV) power station located 13 km outside the town of Touwsrivier in the Western Cape of South Africa.[3] The installation reached full capacity in December 2014 and is the second largest operating CPV facility in the world.[4] Electricity produced by the plant is fed into the national grid operated by Eskom under a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA).[1]

Touwsrivier CPV Solar Project
CountrySouth Africa
LocationTouwsrivier, Western Cape
Coordinates33°24′38″S 19°55′35″E
StatusOperational
Commission dateDecember 2014
Construction costR1 billion (~US$100 million)[1]
Owner(s)Soitec (20%)
South African Govt (40%)
Pele Energy Group (35%)
Local Community (5%)
Operator(s)juwi SOLAR ZA
Solar farm
TypeCPV
Site area470 acres (190 ha) [2]
Power generation
Units operational1500 Soitec CX-S530-II
Nameplate capacity44 MWp, 36 MWAC
Capacity factor22.8% (average 2015-2019)
Annual net output72.0 GW·h, 153 MW·h/acre
Overall layout of the project

Facility construction details

The facility consists of 1500 dual-axis CX-S530-II solar tracking systems divided into 60 sections.[1] The 25 systems of each section are connected in parallel to a central grid-connected 630 kW inverter.[2] Each system supports 12 CX-M500 modules which are each rated to produce 2450 Wp.[5] Each module contains 2,400 fresnel lenses to concentrate sunlight 500 times onto multi-junction solar cells, allowing a greater efficiency than other photovoltaic power plants.[6][7]

The facility is sited on 190 hectares near a similar 60 kW CPV pilot plant on the neighbouring Aquila private game reserve.[2][8] Group Five Construction (Pty) Ltd served as the EPC contractor for the balance of the project.[9] [10] It is the world's largest assembly of Soitec's Concentrix Solar technology.[4][11]

Ownership, funding, and operations

Soitec initiated the project under the South African government's Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer (REIPP) programme.[12] Construction was financed with a US$100 million (R1 billion) bond special purpose vehicle (SPV) on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.[3][13] [14] The project is owned by Soitec (20%); the Public Investment Corporation, which is the South African Government's employee pension fund (40% through a preferred share structure ); Pele Green Energy (Pty) Ltd (35%); and the Touwsrivier Community Trust (5%).[3][15] Pele Energy also provides oversight of ongoing operation and improvement activities with a subsidiary of juwi Renewable Energies.[3][10]

Local community

Like other similar solar projects in South Africa, a profit sharing and investment agreement exists with the local community whereby a share of the profits from the plant are invested in improving the town of Touws River. This includes the construction of a hydroponics farm employing 30 people and upgrades to the town's primary school.[16] Ongoing maintenance and security operations at the plant also employ about 35 people.[17][18]

Electricity production

Monthly capacity and production data for grid-connected photovoltaic plants in South Africa are available in aggregate from the Renewable Energy Data and Information Service.[19] Data from individual plants is restricted due to Department of Energy confidentiality protocols.[20] Annual electricity production for the Touwsrivier CPV plant has performed near expected targets for the first five years of operation (2015-2019) as summarized in this bond credit rating opinion from Moody's.

Total Annual Generation of CPV1[3]
YearTotal Annual MW·h
201569,204
201674,364
201775,506
201870,533
201970,394
Average (2015-2019)72,000

Note that the plant's 44 MWp peak DC rating is specified under concentrator standard test conditions (CSTC) of DNI=1000 W/m2, AM1.5D, & Tcell=25 °C, as per the IEC 62670 standard convention.[21] Production capacity is 36MW based on IEC 62670 concentrator standard operating conditions (CSOC) of DNI=900 W/m2, AM1.5D, Tambient=20 °C, & Wind speed=2 m/s,[5] and is also the value quoted by several sources as representing the plant's expected AC capacity (denoted as MWAC).[3][9][10][19] A capacity factor of 0.230 (23.0%) then corresponds to annual production of:

See also

References
  1. "Projects: Touwsrivier". cpvconsortium.org. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
  2. "Visit of Soitec's Touwsrivier Project". Consulat Général de France au Cap. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
  3. "Moody's Global Research, CPV Power Plant Credit Opinion, 2020-04-07" (PDF). Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  4. "List of Project Capacities". cpvconsortium.org. Retrieved 2019-01-22.
  5. "Soitec Technical Data Sheet" (PDF).
  6. "Optics take center stage in concentrating photovoltaic systems". Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  7. "Concentrator photovoltaics: a mature technology for solar power plants". Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  8. "Aquila Private Game Reserve goes GREEN".
  9. "Group Five-Engineering and Construction-Power".
  10. Scholtz, Christoff (29 January 2018). "A solar project in Touwsrivier is powering ahead". www.globalafricanetwork.com. Global Africa Network. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
  11. "Concentrix Technology for Utility-Scale Solar Power Plants" (PDF).
  12. "Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme". Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  13. "Concentrated solar plant to deliver 22MW". www.iol.co.za. IOL Business Report. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
  14. Runyon, Jennifer (2013-07-05). "Could Utility-Scale Solar Financing with Bonds Be the New Normal?". Renewable Energy World. Vol. 16 no. 3. Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  15. "PIC acquires power plant". www.fin24.com. News24. 2018-04-13. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  16. "Touwsriver school to use solar power after being taken off the power grid". www.iol.co.za. The Star. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
  17. "At the gates". www.energy.org.za/. Renewables in Africa Blog. Retrieved 2019-01-22.
  18. "Brightened prospects in Touws River thanks to renewable energy". za.usembassy.gov. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  19. "Republic of South Africa, Department of Energy, REDIS". redis.energy.gov.za. Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  20. "Republic of South Africa, Department of Energy, REDIS sourcing". redis.energy.gov.za. Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  21. "Photovoltaic concentrators (CPV) - Performance testing - Part 1: Standard conditions". www.iec.ch. Retrieved 2019-01-20.
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