Statkraft Advances 140 MW Solar Project in Spain

Norwegian power producer Statkraft A/S is seeking a construction licence and a public utility status for its 140MW Arada Solar project located in Castellon province, eastern Spain, where it is supposed to contribute to green hydrogen production for local tile and ceramics manufacturers.

As Statkraft’s Spanish unit explained on Monday, the company is only seeking the public utility status for Arada Solar’s power lines and the substation, not the plant itself. It said that the request of this status is a usual procedure for these types of projects given the difficulty in communicating with the affected landowners.

The power lines infrastructure will run through different plots of land spread across six municipalities. Statkraft plans to only utilise the necessary corridor and airspace for the 220-kV voltage line to ensure land ownership and agricultural activities remain intact. The company said that its intention is to reach an agreement with all landowners.

Statkraft had previously secured the environmental permit and consent for the project.

Arada Solar will represent an investment of close to EUR 100 million (USD 108.7m). Located near the ceramics cluster in Castellon, the plant will be part of a green hydrogen production scheme aimed at decarbonising the area’s tile and ceramics manufacturers, Statkraft added.