CELLS secures project development rights from RIC Energy for 940 MW solar portfolio in Spain
Q
CELLS completes transaction for development of large-scale solar projects
across Spain. Development rights for this 940 MWp portfolio were acquired from
Spanish global renewable energy developer RIC Energy.
Q CELLS, a total energy solutions provider in solar cell and module, energy storage, downstream project business and energy retail, has secured the project development rights for a 940 MWp solar portfolio in Spain, in what is one of the largest renewable energy transactions in Spain’s history.
Q CELLS’ Downstream Business Unit signed on December 31, 2019 an agreement to purchase 940 MWp of new solar capacity in Spain, which is projected to achieve Ready to Build status by the first quarter of 2022. Once completed, these solar installations will generate enough clean electricity to meet the annual power needs of more than half a million Spanish households.
RIC Energy is active in Spain, the USA, India and in parts of Africa. This transaction represents the largest deal that the company has completed in the Spanish market to date. In addition to the sale purchase agreement, RIC Energy confirmed that it will provide development services for all the projects in order to bring them to Ready-to-Build status.
The purchase agreement is a landmark transaction for Q CELLS’ Downstream Business division, which was officially created at the beginning of the year as successor to the former Q CELLS EPC Division.
Q CELLS’ Downstream Business Unit now owns more than 1 GW of solar projects in Spain, and has a PV portfolio of more than 2 GW in the pipeline, across Iberia, Poland and Italy.
Gains in Spain
Q CELLS’ commitment to the Iberian Peninsula has grown in the past year in response to the burgeoning solar development opportunities emerging in both Spain and Portugal. Having enjoyed somewhat of a breakthrough year in 2019 – installing close to 300 MW of new PV capacity and assigning a further 1.15 GW at auction, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance data – Portugal could well install more than 500 MW of new solar capacity in 2020.
Neighbouring Spain, meanwhile, finally appears to have discovered a thirst for sustainable solar growth, following a few years of boom-and-bust. In 2020, IHS Market forecasts Spain to claim 15% share of all European installations, behind only Germany, in a year in which Europe may exceed 23 GW of new capacity. Driving Spain’s solar growth this year will be its utility-scale sector.
Sang Chull Chung, Head of EU Downstream Business Unit for Q CELLS, said: “In securing the development rights from RIC Energy for its 940 MWp solar portfolio, Q CELLS is sending out a strong statement of belief in the European market. As our Downstream Business Unit seeks to grow, Q CELLS is eager to proactively explore the opportunities that exist right across the continent at a time of exciting growth potential for many European countries, particularly on the Iberian Peninsula.”
José Luis Moya, CEO of RIC Energy, added: “This transaction represents the largest such deal that RIC Energy has completed in the Spanish market to date. Given the size of our current portfolio, we expect to close operations of similar size during 2020.”