EnorChile and SolFocus Unveil First CPV Solar Pilot Plants in Chile
Construction to start this year on Mexico's largest concentrator photovoltaic power plant
SAN JOSE, Calif./SANTIAGO, Chile, October 14, 2011 – EnorChile and SolFocus today announced two Concentrator Photovoltaic (CPV) pilot plants, bringing solar CPV technology to the country for the first time. The high-efficiency solar systems enabled by CPV are capable of converting the most sunlight to electricity possible in sunny environments today. The first pilot where the system is being unveiled today is at an EnorChile facility in Santiago. The second pilot plant to be deployed in the next few weeks is located at a mining facility in Calama. The systems together provide 17.6 kilowatts (kW) using the SolFocus SF-1100S CPV systems.
"We are proud to be showcasing the first CPV pilot plants in Chile with SolFocus," said Rodrigo Sáez Rojas, CEO of EnorChile. "We look forward to continuing our partnership with SolFocus on future projects that will provide Chile with reliable, clean power."
SolFocus' CPV technology can provide clean, reliable electricity to the mining, agriculture and other industrial sectors in Chile. Because of Chile's strong solar resource in the North – the best solar resource in the world – this region is ideally suited for CPV technology, where the high conversion efficiency of sunlight to electricity is exceptional due to the high-solar resources.
"In a country where heavy, remote industrial markets are heavily dependent on a steady supply of power and often have to depend on such technologies as diesel generation, SolFocus' CPV systems can provide cleaner, low-cost energy," said Nancy Hartsoch, Vice President of Marketing at SolFocus. "SolFocus CPV technology has the ability to scale up or down based on the changing needs of each project, which is an important factor to the dynamic energy needs of the Chilean industry. In 10 megawatt installations it can be an ideal match, providing the greatest energy generation in deployment sizes that support a stable grid."
Together, EnorChile and SolFocus will unveil the Santiago pilot plant today, Friday, Oct. 14, 2011, at 11 a.m. CLST. The event will take place at Exequiel Fernandez 3397, Macul.
About SolFocus
SolFocus is a leading developer and manufacturer of solar energy systems based on Concentrator Photovoltaic (CPV) technology. The company's mission is to deliver the lowest cost of solar energy in high solar resource regions of the world. Achieving this objective starts with developing industry-leading, high-efficiency products which deliver the highest energy harvest of any technology available today. When combined with volume manufacturing and component sourcing the technology drives delivery and operation costs to their lowest. In addition to low costs, SolFocus produces product that provides extended reliability and field durability, critical requirements when deploying energy systems which will remain productive in the field for over 25 years. Currently SolFocus is actively deploying product around the globe. SolFocus products can be seen operating in Arizona, Colorado, California, Hawaii, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Spain, Australia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Malaysia. SolFocus CPV systems are certified to the rigorous standards of IEC 62108, and are backed by Munich Re performance insurance. For more information on SolFocus visit www.solfocus.com.
About EnorChile
Enorchile is a sustainable energy developer with 10 years of experience in the Chilean energy market. The company's mission is to be the leader in sustainable energy supply in the Chilean mining industry and big industries always looking for innovative solutions for customers' unique energy problems. Enorchile has a pipeline of projects in wind farms and biomass (Central Grid), solar energy (CPV), waste-to-energy and tailings energy generation. The company has operational installations in Iquique, Calama and Rancagua and all the power plants are monitored and operated from the main dispatch center at the central offices in Santiago. Enorchile has more than 35 MW of installed power in conventional fuels, several industrial customers in the northern grid and contracts with the two biggest copper mines (Escondida & Chuquicamata/Radomiro Tomic) in Chile to supply energy from innovative technologies. For more information on Enorchile visit www.enorchile.cl.
