US-based green energy firm SolarReserve has received environmental approval from the Government of Chile to develop the 260MW Copiapó solar project in the country, which is being touted as one of the world’s largest solar projects with energy storage.
The solar project, which will feature the firm’s concentrating solar power (CSP) technology, is scheduled to be commissioned in 2019.
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Once operational, it will deliver clean, non-intermittent baseload power to customers 24 hours a day through a central interconnected system (SIC).
SolarReserve CEO Kevin Smith said: "One of the fundamental goals for SolarReserve is minimising the environmental impacts of our projects at every stage, from site selection and construction, to full operational use.
"Sustainability is the focus of our business. Our proprietary solar energy storage technology provides a viable and cost competitive alternative to fossil-based electricity generation, with the potential to meaningfully reduce reliance on fossil fuels and associated carbon pollution that is contributing to climate change."
Located in the Atacama region, the project will combine CSP tower technology with molten salt thermal energy storage and solar photovoltaic panels (PV) to deliver more than 1,800GWh of power annually.
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By GlobalDataSolarReserve Development SVP Tom Georgis said: "This technology realistically has the potential to power the entire country of Chile using two phenomenal Chilean resources, salt and sun."
