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 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Country | South Africa |
| Location | Touwsrivier (Cape Winelands District Municipality), Western Cape |
| Coordinates | 33°24′38″S 19°55′35″E / 33.41056°S 19.92639°E |
| Status | Operational |
| Commission date | December 2014 |
| Construction cost | R1 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 | |
| Type | CPV |
| Site area | 470 acres (190 ha) [2] |
| Power generation | |
| Units operational | 1500 Soitec CX-S530-II |
| Nameplate capacity | 44 MWp, 36 MWAC |
| Capacity factor | 22.8% (average 2015-2019) |
| Annual net output | 72.0 GW·h, 153 MW·h/acre |
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 AfricanGovernment'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.
| Year | Total Annual MW·h |
|---|---|
| 2015 | 69,204 |
| 2016 | 74,364 |
| 2017 | 75,506 |
| 2018 | 70,533 |
| 2019 | 70,394 |
| 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:
