Galp Energia is going ahead with its application for a licence to set up its first photovoltaic power plant in São Teotónio, Odemira.This licensing request needs a positive opinion from the Directorate General for Energy and Geology (DGEG), but in the meantime, Odemira council has approved the scheme.
The councils says that its approval in principle, does not mean a binding commitment and does not do away with the necessary licensing procedures.
Galp has chosen a site the south of the Odemira council area, near Choça, in an area that is not part of the natural park area of the southwest Alentejo and not in an area covered by Natura 2000.
In February 2017, the head of Galp said the company’s intention is to invest in renewable energy production, following a sector trend to move away from CO2 emissions from energy production.
At a presentation to analysts and investors in London, Carlos Gomes da Silva, said at the time, "the ambition is to follow the transition to low-carbon."
"We can not be indifferent to what goes on around us: everything is leading to a decarbonisation of energy. We arrive at renewables at a time when technology begins to be competitive in the market without having to receive any kind of subsidy.”
This has not stopped Galp, with its Italian partner, ENI, pushing hard for its first oil test-well just 40 or so kilometres out to sea from Aljezur, further down the Alentejo coast.
This has not stopped Galp, with its Italian partner, ENI, pushing hard for its first oil test-well just 40 or so kilometres out to sea from Aljezur, further down the Alentejo coast.
A report from Emiliano Bellini from PV Magazine, staes that Portugal’s grid operator, Redes Energéticas Nacionais (REN) is planning to increase grid capacity in the southern part of the country to accommodate more large-scale solar power over the next few years.
According to the new investment plan for the period 2018-2027, REN intends to invest up to €70 million to enlarge grid capabilities in the Algarve and southern Alentejo, including Orique, where several large-scale PV projects currently are being developed.
This new 400 kW infrastructure, REN said in the plan, is expected to enable the deployment of around 800 MW of new PV capacity between 2024 and 2026.
More capacity, REN said, may be deployed depending on the impact studies, which will be conducted on REN’s operations, as well as on the capacity that is currently allocated for the region of Sines, which may also become available for more solar power.
According to ERSE, it has received interconnection requests for around 3 GW of solar plants over the past years. “These projects are mainly distributed between Alentejo and Algarve,” the regulator stressed in the report.
In mid-January, the DGEG said it was also reviewing a further 91 PV projects totaling 2.2 GW for approval. Not all of this production can be connected to the grid, due to limited capacity.
