Equinor and its Brazilian subsidiary Rio Energy have begun commercial production at the Serra da Babilonia Solar facility, creating the company’s first hybrid power asset.
The company said the 140MW solar site is co-located with the 223MW Serra da Babilonia Wind complex.
“Hybrid projects that effectively integrate solar and wind technologies support a stable and reliable energy supply while enhancing value creation, in line with Equinor’s strategy,” said Helge Haugane, executive vice president for power at Equinor.
Equinor added that hybrid design reduces intermittency by combining resources that generate at different times and seasons.
The project leverages shared infrastructure with the operating wind farm to deliver cost efficiencies in operations and maintenance.
Annual output is estimated at 236GWh, equivalent to the consumption of 143,000 Brazilian households, and will be sold in the Brazilian market by Danske Commodities.
“Brazil is a key area for Equinor’s long-term growth,” said Equinor Brazil senior vice president and country manager Veronica Coelho.
She stated that Equinor now has around 600MW of solar and wind capacity in production that can be further optimised through Danske Commodities.
Serra da Babilonia Solar is the first project delivered by Rio Energy as a wholly owned subsidiary of Equinor.