Europe's offshore solar ambitions are making waves off the coast of Spain, as BlueNewables, backed by Naturgy, has completed the installation of two innovative floating platforms in Valencia, setting the ball rolling on a high-stakes testing phase for the country's first pre-commercial marine solar project.
The marine horizon in Spain is looking a little brighter, as the Port of Valencia is now home to two 500 kW PV-bos platforms that form the 1 MW offshore floating solar energy demonstrator developed by BlueNewables.
With the installation of the second unit, the Spain-based engineering consultancy, with the support of Naturgy, has completed the deployment of the demonstrator, which is now entering its testing phase to validate the performance of this technology under real operational conditions.
The Spanish player highlighted: “The installation of the demonstrator and the launch of its testing phase in the waters of the Port of Valencia form part of Valencia port's strategy to advance toward a more sustainable, innovative, and efficient port model.
“In this context, the Port Authority of Valencia is developing a testing platform designed for the connection, testing, and grid injection of marine renewable generation technology demonstrators, which will remain available for future projects.”
The company explains that the two PV-bos platforms, built at the San Enrique shipyard in Vigo, are named Paiporta and Catarroja as a tribute to two of the Valencian municipalities most affected by the 2024 DANA storm. The project is launching its testing and monitoring phase in the waters of the Port of Valencia.
The objective of this move is to gain insights into the operation of this technology in a real marine environment and to analyze aspects related to performance, operation, maintenance, and integration within port space, as part of the demonstrator's validation process; thus, results and lessons will be gathered as operations progress.
The firm emphasized: “PV-bos expands the application field of solar energy to areas where land availability is limited or very costly, electrical grids are insufficient, or in island systems. The solution developed by BlueNewables is designed to be modular, scalable, and industrializable, facilitating its adaptation to various locations and project models.
“This approach brings generation closer to points of consumption and harnesses new surfaces to produce clean energy without competing for land.”
Naturgy and BlueNewables will collaborate for two years on the exchange of technical, operational, strategic, and economic information derived from the project's development, both during the testing phase and subsequent monitoring, covering the analysis of performance data, technical incidents, costs, operation, and lessons learned to evaluate the potential of this technology.
The developer elaborates that the installation is part of RENMARINAS VALENCIAPORT, an initiative funded by IDAE with European Union-NextGeneration EU funds, conceived as a demonstration environment for marine renewable technologies.
Within this framework, the Port Authority of Valencia has developed the testing zone and associated infrastructures, while BlueNewables is participating with its 1 MW floating photovoltaic demonstrator, composed of two 500 kW PV-bos platforms.
The Spanish company underlined: “Offshore floating photovoltaics open up new opportunities to expand the use of renewable resources in the maritime environment.
“Its potential complementarity with other technologies—especially offshore wind—as well as its applications in ports, islands, and other coastal infrastructures, make it one of the most promising emerging solutions to advance the decarbonization of the energy system.”