UAE-funded 5MW solar photovoltaic plant inaugurated in Seychelles

UAE-funded 5MW solar photovoltaic plant inaugurated in Seychelles

The Republic of Seychelles has inaugurated a UAE-funded 5-megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) plant with battery storage, the second clean-energy project in the African island nation.

Developed by Masdar and Seychelles’ Public Utilities Corporation (PUC), the Ile de Romainville Solar Park was financed by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), one of the UAE’s leading development-financing institutions owned by the Abu Dhabi government.

The facilities include the 5 MW solar PV plant located in Ile de Romainville, a 3.3 MWh energy storage system located on Mahé, and a 33kV system that allows for the safe and stable supply of electricity from the PV power plant to the main island of Mahé, which further increases the resilience of the national grid of Seychelles.

Furthermore, it is estimated that the project will save approximately 2 million liters of fuel annually and offset 6,000 tons of carbon dioxide.

The Ile de Romainville Solar Park was constructed on the same island hosting several wind turbines from ADFD and Masdar’s first project in Seychelles, the Port Victoria Wind Farm, which has been operational since 2013.

“The park’s PV array was specifically designed to maximize the use of available land, while allowing for the maintenance of the wind turbines and