WElink Energy and China Triumph International Engineering Company have inaugurated the 46MW Ourika solar project near Ourique in southern Portugal.
The subsidy-free project covers 100 hectares and comprises 142,000 photovoltaic panels.
WElink Group chief executive Barry O’Neill said: “The opening of the Ourika plant sends a clear message that PV solar is now a mature technology pushing into the post-subsidy era.
“We were attracted to invest in Portugal by the leadership demonstrated by the Portuguese government in delivering its ambitious low-carbon targets, and its contribution to the European Commission agenda.
“Together with our partner, CTIEC, we are extremely pleased to have contributed to Portugal’s renewable energy strategy by developing this ground breaking project.”
Portuguese Minister for the Economy Manuel Caldeira Cabral said: “This shows that Portugal today is a country that is competitive in terms of renewable energies without needing subsidies, which is due to the optimum conditions that the country has for solar production but also to the technological evolution that has taken place.
“What we think is that in the coming years with what is already licensed until 2021, it will be possible to more than triple the production capacity in solar.”
Image: WElink Energy
Ourika moment brings all smiles
By EBS