Iberdrola completes first phase of Noronha Verde project in Brazil
Published by Jessica Casey,
Editor
Energy Global,
Iberdrola has completed the first phase of the Noronha Verde project in the Fernando de Noronha archipelago, Brazil. The company has installed 4800 solar panels – 15% of the total planned – and started the tests to supply energy to the island's electric network.
This initiative combines solar generation and battery storage to transform Fernando de Noronha into Latin America’s first inhabited oceanic island with a highly sustainable energy model, setting a benchmark in self-sufficiency, security, and efficiency.
The project, developed by the Group’s Brazilian subsidiary Neoenergia, will include more than 30 000 solar panels, represent an investment of R$350 million Brazilian (more than €50 million), and is due to be completed by the end of 2026. It is being developed in an area recognised by UNESCO as a Natural World Heritage Site.
Noronha Verde will eliminate the use of fossil fuels in the island’s power generation, replacing them with renewable and clean technologies. The future solar plant will incorporate advanced battery storage systems and will reach an installed capacity of 22 MWp, with 49 MWh of storage – enough to cover consumption equivalent to around 9000 households. This will help reduce the current reliance on biodiesel-based generation.
The project, unveiled last November by Iberdrola’s Executive Chairman, Ignacio Galán, and Brazil’s Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira, is being carried out in collaboration with the Federal Government and the Government of the State of Pernambuco. It forms part of the Mais por Noronha programme, which promotes electrification initiatives and new energy solutions on the island, including the installation of solar systems in homes and accommodation, the development of charging infrastructure and distributed microgeneration, the introduction of electric vehicles, and the deployment of smart grids.
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Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/solar/18052026/iberdrola-completes-first-phase-of-noronha-verde-project-in-brazil/