Scatec Solar has grid connected and reached commercial operation for the 65 MW Gurun solar power plant.
Image: Scatec Solar
Scatec Solar has reached commercial operation for its first solar park in Malaysia. The site – Gurun Plant – has a 65 MW power rating and is the first of three Scatec projects of that size in the northwest Malaysian peninsula.
According to company information, Gurun can provide 31,000 households with electricity. Scatec entered the Malaysian market at the end of 2016 by signing three PPAs with the country’s largest electric utility, Tenaga Nasional Berhad. The partnership reportedly encompasses three plants with a combined power rating of 197 MW and a total investment of MYR1.235 billion ($293 million).
“Completing our first solar plant in South East Asia together with our partners marks another important milestone for us,” said Raymond Carlsen, CEO of Scatec Solar. “We are now realizing one of the largest solar energy portfolios in the region, with a total of 197 MW, and we continue to see several interesting opportunities in the South East Asian market.”
Last month, Scatec closed financing on what will be its fourth Malaysian PV park, with a power rating of 47 MW. For that project, $47 million was provided by BNP Paribas in the form of a non-recourse finance facility for around 73% of the project development costs.
Last year, the Malaysian government announced a third large-scale solar tender round. The total capacity of the tender will probably be 500 MWac. The Ministry of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change has also announced it will review land acquisition rights for renewable energy projects and will work to reduce the bureaucratic burden on international companies seeking to enter the market.
Source: pv magazine
