Renewable power plants operator Voltalia SA on Thursday announced the commissioning of its 5-MW Parc Sable Blanc solar farm with an integrated storage system in French Guiana.
The Paris-based company secured the project in a government tender for solar projects in non-interconnected zones (ZNIs) in May 2021. The guaranteed tariff contract for the plant’s output will be valid for 20 years.
Located in the commune of Mana, the photovoltaic (PV) farm will be capable of generating 7,430 MWh of electricity, or enough to cover the consumption of roughly 3,090 inhabitants of Western Guiana. The plant is coupled with a 10.6-MWh lithium-ion battery storage facility, which will help stabilize the local grid during high-demand periods.
The battery is situated within Voltalia’s Toco energy storage complex, touted as one of the largest ones of its kind in France with a capacity of 19 MW/27 MWh.
At present, Voltalia operates 48 MW of solar, hydropower, biomass and energy storage assets in French Guiana. The firm started building Parc Sable Blanc in November 2011.
