BP Solar, RGE Hook Up In Supply Deal
RECHARGE News
BP Solar has signed a supply deal with Germany’s RGE Energy that will see it deliver 66 megawatts (MW) worth of solar modules – including 46MW for a single installation in Koethen, Germany, which will be one of the largest in the world.
Solar-energy developer RGE is waiting to get its final approval from the Germany government before it begins construction on the Koethen project in the third quarter of 2009. The array will use 210,000 BP-built crystalline photovoltaic modules, and will provide enough electricity to power 11,500 German homes.
The deal also includes 15MW of modules for a solar farm at the Eberswalde airport, near Berlin, with an option for another 15MW.
Unusually, BP Solar offered RGE a guaranteed yield on its modules. If the system does not deliver the promised yield, BP will cover the difference on the basis of the current Germany feed-in tariff for solar-fuelled electricity.
Reyad Fezzani, chief executive of BP Solar, says the company is moving decisively towards the fast-growing market for utility-scale solar arrays.
“Our strategy is to offer our customers the lowest cost in cents per kilowatt-hour over the life of a solar system,” Fezzani says. “With the additional yield guarantee, we are standing behind the quality of our product.”
