Schmid Group to supply Argentinian PV plant for mining operations
The SCHMID Group has announced the contract for the construction of a fully integrated factory for monocrystalline silicon ingot to module production for the utility company of the Argentinean province of San Juan, Energia Provincial Sociedad del Estado ( EPSE ). A second stage is planned for the extension to the upstream polysilicon production.
SCHMID will be the general contractor in building the facility, including infrastructure in the provincial capital San Juan and will be supplying advanced production equipment mainly from its own portfolio. The systems are optimized to produce high-efficiency solar cells at low cost of ownership.
The facility has an annual capacity of 70 MW for glass/film modules that will be used for the energy supply of the gold and copper mines as well as irrigation systems in San Juan. The supply of the Argentinean market and other Mercosur countries is planned.
So far the power demand of mines such as the San Juan mine at 4000m with 20,000 workers must be covered by diesel generators. Changing to solar based power solutions will improve the environment the mine operates in and save energy costs in the long run.
The high power demand of the artificial irrigation in the extremely arid region (80 mm of precipitation per year) will be met with solar power in the future.
The province of San Juan has been a leader in photovoltaics in Argentina with the first grid-connected PV power plants in the country have been installed. The conditions are ideal, with an annual solar radiation of 2,300 kWh per m². EPSE is planning to develop the region's electricity supply consistently to an ideal energy mix with high PV share. The construction of the integrated photovoltaic production is currently one of the key projects for the province and is also supported by the Argentine government, whose president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, together with the Governor of the Province of San Juan, José Luis Gioja
