Norwegian company Scatec Solar has reiterated plans to set up large-scale solar power projects, and shared details about the capacity and location of the project.
Media reported earlier this month that Scatec Solar will set up an 800 megawatt solar power project at Chandpur in southern Bangladesh. The total cost of the project is expected to be around $1 billion as Bangladesh is still behind more mature solar markets with considerably lower cost of generation.
Representatives of Scatec Solar signed an agreement regarding the project with Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (BEZA).
Scatec Solar has signed another agreement with the Bangladesh government back in early 2017. The company had not announced the capacity it plans to set up but had mentioned a 100 megawatt project in northern Bangladesh to get things started. The fate or current status of that project remains unknown.
Bangladesh does not have a substantial renewable energy capacity and has to import electricity from its neighbors to fulfill its demand. It is now also planning to invest in hydro power projects in Nepal and import electricity from that country.
Bangladesh plans to increase the share of renewable energy to 10% by 2020. Last year, the BEZA signed a similar agreement with POWERCHINA to set up a 1 gigawatt solar power park. The Bangladesh Power Division is also reportedly planning a 600 megawatt solar project.
Apart from Scatec Solar and POWERCHINA, SkyPower Global announced plans to invest $4.3 billion to set up 2 gigawatt solar power capacity as well as a 500 megawatt solar module fabrication and assembly unit. Again, no updates are available regarding the progress made by SkyPower with respect to that announcement.
Source: cleantechnica.com
