Atrato Onsite Energy has announced the opening a 55MW solar farm in Yorkshire, England.
The £39.4m plant, owned and developed by Atrato, is the company’s largest installation investment to date and has capacity enough clean energy to power over 20,000 homes and cut 11,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.
Located in the market town of Richmond in North Yorkshire, the solar farm will supply OVO with 49GWh of clean energy annually as part of a three-year PPA.
The agreement forms part of OVO’s Plan Zero commitment to provide its customers with cleaner energy that is better for customers and the planet.
Atrato Partners managing director Gurpreet Gujral said: “Tripling the UK’s solar capacity by 2030 is no mean feat, however the UK’s potential to achieve it is indisputable.
“From roof-top installations to record-breaking solar farms of this scale, driving forward solar projects is not only fundamental to reaching the UK government’s target of a clean electricity system by 2030, but a net zero economy entirely.
“Today, Power Purchase Agreements are making it easier than ever for businesses to decarbonise operations.
“Through solar installations, energy providers and businesses more generally can make enormous emission cuts and have certainty over energy supply.
“Our agreement with OVO will play a fundamental role in meeting the growing demand from citizens across the UK for cleaner and greener energy.”
The solar farm consists of over 93,000 bi-facial solar panels across around 166 acres, equivalent to 93 football pitches.
The deployment of bi-facial modules has dramatically enhanced each panel’s exposure to light to improve energy generation by around 5% compared to a standard mono-facial panel, Atrato said.
The installation of this solar farm will also support further renewables development and strengthening of the grid, with a battery storage system to follow, it added.
OVO head of renewables Susie Leppard said: “Our Power Purchase Agreement with Atrato Onsite Energy at Skeeby is another example of how the renewable generation sector and retail suppliers like us can come together to enable greater volumes of cleaner energy into the UK’s energy system.
“This partnership supports our focus to deliver cleaner energy for our customers, through our Greener Electricity add-on, while building a greener grid.”