Los Girasoles 12.3MW Solar Energy Farm Comes Online In Colombia

European energy developer MPC Energy Solutions announced last week the completion of construction and the grid connection for its Parque Solar Los Girasoles solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in Norte de Santander, Colombia, with an installed capacity of 12.3 MW. Parque Solar Los Girasoles is the third project in the company’s portfolio to commence operations this year, following Santa Rosa & Villa Sol in El Salvador, and Neol CHP in Puerto Rico, and the fourth operational plant overall.

MPC Energy Solutions is selling the generated power through a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with Spectrum, a leading Colombian energy trading firm and electricity supplier. Parque Solar Los Girasoles will supply around 23 GWh of solar energy per year, helping avoid the emission of close to 100,000 tons of  CO₂ throughout its lifetime. The project is expected to generate an annual revenue of around $1.3 million USD during the PPA tenor.

“Parque Solar Los Girasoles is a significant milestone for Colombia’s renewable energy targets, and a testament to our commitment to helping diversify the energy mix in the country and across Latin America”, said Juan Esteban Hernández, Head of Project Development LATAM of MPC Energy Solutions. “We are excited to see our portfolio of operational projects grow and contribute to the region’s energy resilience and next-generation infrastructure.”

“We are proud to partner with a global sustainable energy provider to power up a solar PV plant in Colombia. The project will help the country make significant strides toward achieving its target of becoming carbon neutral by 2050”, said André Fraga, CEO at Spectrum. “Parque Solar Los Girasoles also plays a significant role in supporting Spectrum to become Colombia´s first 100% renewable energy supplier.”

MPC Energy Solutions invested $11 million USD equity to develop and construct the project and intends to secure debt financing post commissioning. Colombian company Socolco S.A.S. acted as the engineering and construction (E&C) contractor, and key components, such as solar panels, were supplied by Trina Solar and inverters by Huawei, were procured by MPC directly.