The Dutch-U.S. solar developer and the Israeli company are teaming up to construct 10 solar power plants with a capacity of 10 MW each at several university campuses in Ethiopia.
Energiya Global Capital, which is an Israel-based research & development group, and Netherlands-based solar project developer, Gigawatt Global are planning to build solar parks at several university campuses in Ethiopia.
In a statement sent to pv magazine, Gigawatt Global CEO, Josef Abramovitz said that, initially, the two companies will build 10 solar power facilities with a capacity of 10 MW each, and that the project is currently being discussed with Ethiopian Prime Minister, Hailemariam Dessalegn.
The solar projects, Abramowitz stressed, are part of a broader plan to train hundreds of thousands of students in what will be living laboratories for solar and other green energy.
“The goal is technology and knowledge transfer from Israel and the United States and will be done in phases, subject to final approval of the Prime Minister and Energy Minister, who turned to Israel to help develop this technical training program.” More details on the projects were not provided.
Ethiopia has limited success with solar energy to date. The country’s first large-scale solar facility is a project tendered by the local government last year, a 100 MW solar plant that will be built by Italian power utility Enel.
[www.pv-magazine.com]