First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) and Solarta Co., Ltd., marked the first anniversary of the successful completion of the 3 megawatt (MW) (DC) Sai Sena Solar project in Sena, Ayutthaya, Thailand.
The facility is located 70 kilometers north of Bangkok on 10.4 hectares of land. Owned by Solarta and built by Conergy with around 40,000 First Solar photovoltaic (PV) solar modules, it is expected to send 4.5 million kilowatt hours (kWh) a year of renewable energy to the grid of the Provincial Electricity Authority of Thailand. The electricity produced is equivalent to the annual electricity needs of some 2,100 average Thai households and will displace on average more than 2,200 metric tons of CO2 emissions a year—equivalent to removing more than 1, 000 cars from the road.
“We are pleased to be contributing to the supply of clean, green energy in Thailand, and also have been pleased with the better-than-expected performance of First Solar’s modules under Thailand’s challenging climatic conditions,” said Dr.Supot Sumritvanitcha, CEO of Yanhee Solar Power, a shareholder of Solarta.
Mr. Noppol Milinthanggoon, Chief Executive Officer of Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding PCL. (RATCH), said, "As the leading independent power producer in Thailand, the company focuses its investments not only on fossil fuel fired facilities but also on renewable energy. These investments are in response to the Thai government’s policy of increasing the proportion of renewable sources of electricity generation and reducing the country’s dependence on fossil fuels. Currently, the company has a total renewable electricity generation capacity of 102 MW from 15 projects including wind farms, solar farms and biomass projects. The 3 MW Sai Sena solar power plant, one of eight projects in which the company has interests through Solarta Company Limited, has been commercially operational since April 2011."
“This milestone is very important for us because the Sai Sena project at the time of its commissioning was Southeast Asia’s largest private solar project,” said Kevin Berkemeyer, First Solar Senior Manager, Business Development. “The success of this project has encouraged more investment in solar power in Thailand, and we look forward to continuing to help Thailand fulfill its clean energy and energy security needs in the months and years to come.”
The modules in the project are covered by First Solar’s industry-leading, prefunded module and recycling program, under which the company will collect and recycle its modules at no additional charge. First Solar’s advanced PV technology is specifically designed to deliver clean, affordable and sustainable solar power on a large scale with the lowest carbon footprint of any current PV technology.