Lightsource, Green Rock Energy to build 150 megawatt solar energy project
Lightsource bp, a developer and management of solar energy projects, will work with Green Rock Energy to co-locate a 150 megawatt solar project at an aquaculture facility in Taiwan.
Lightsource bp’s strategy in Taiwan is underpinned by partnering with Taiwanese developers to combine its world-class solar expertise with the local knowledge and experience of its partners. Another key element to its strategy is hiring local companies at various stages of the projects’ development.
“There are a lot of interesting opportunities for solar in Asia and our long-term ambition is to have an EMEA, Americas and an Asia-Pacific region, so we’re excited that, through our first East Asian project in Taiwan, we are beginning to build that third leg of the stool,” said Nick Boyle, group CEO, Lightsource bp. “Taiwan relies on imports for about 95% of its energy, which leaves its energy supply vulnerable to external disruption. This energy challenge, coupled with the need for sustainably generated electricity, makes Taiwan a unique project and we’re thrilled to draw on our global experience and work with Green Rock Energy to step up to the challenge.”
A step closer to a low-carbon future
The move to enter the Taiwanese market comes after Lightsource bp secured a $1.8 billion credit and trade finance facility last year to fuel its global growth strategy of developing 25 gigawatts of solar by 2025. The funding is provided by 10 top tier global financial institutions, to aid its growth ambitions and execution strategy as it continues to accelerate the deployment of solar across the EMEA, Americas and Asia-Pacific regions.
Commenting on Lightsource bp’s move into East Asia, David Anderson, bp’s senior vice president of renewables growth, added: “This deal reflects the innovative ways renewable energy can be deployed to power both industries and communities. Lightsource bp has achieved phenomenal growth and it’s exactly the type of pace we want to keep as we head towards a net zero future.”
Eugene Chien, ambassador-at-large of Taiwan, and chairman of Taiwan Institute for Sustainable Energy said: “In the process of promoting Taiwan to achieve its net-zero emission goal, the industrial chain, public and private sectors, and the public need to join hands to jointly promote the comprehensive transformation of energy, industry, life and society. Among them, the solar energy industry plays a key role in Taiwan’s energy transition process. It is great to see world-class solar companies like Lightsource bp join the ranks of Taiwan’s energy transition and work together to achieve the goal of 20 gigawatts of solar energy installations by 2025.”
Cohabitating solar and aquaculture to bring economic benefits
Lightsource bp’s 150 megawatt project gives equal consideration to clean energy, ecological and economic development.
The Budai project will be one of the largest fishery solar farms in Taiwan, creating 750 employment opportunities during construction, which is expected to commence in June 2023. Once constructed, the project will produce 210,000 megawatt hours of renewable electricity a year – that’s enough to power roughly 43,000 homes and save 133,770 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
Alongside providing locally generated renewable energy and creating new jobs, Lightsource bp’s fishery solar project has been designed to benefit the local environment and community. Throughout the process, Lightsource bp engaged environmental specialists as well as local fishermen to provide expertise and design a project with multiple benefits. These include enabling fishermen to farm on around 200 ponds as well as adding saltwater storage ponds to optimize the water management process for the fish farmers.
