Sarnia Solar Project | |
Name Official: | Sarnia Solar Project |
Coordinates: | 42.9378°N -82.3417°W |
Country: | Canada |
Location: | Sarnia, Ontario |
Status: | O |
Commissioned: | December 2009 |
Cost: | $400 Million |
Owner: | Enbridge |
Operator: | First Solar O&M |
Solar Type: | PV |
Ps Units Operational: | 1,300,000 |
Ps Site Area: | 1100acres |
Ps Electrical Capacity: | 80 MWAC |
Ps Electrical Cap Fac: | 17.1%[1] |
Ps Annual Generation: | 120 GWh |
Sarnia Photovoltaic Power Plant near Sarnia, Ontario, is Canada's largest photovoltaic plant with an installed capacity of 97 MWP (80 MWAC).[2] [3] [4] [5]
In 2009, Ontario introduced a feed-in tariff renewable energy payments program paying up to CDN 44.3 cents per kW·h for large ground arrays such as the Sarnia plant.[6] This makes Ontario's one of the top feed in tariff programs in the world.
Phase I (for 20 MW) was completed in December 2009.[7] Phase II (60 MW) was completed in September 2010 at a cost of C$300 million.[8] [9] The project was developed by Enbridge.[10]
First Solar developed, engineered, and constructed the facility, and it will operate the Sarnia Solar Project for Enbridge under a long-term contract. Enbridge will sell the power output of the facility to the Ontario Power Authority pursuant to 20-year power purchase agreements under the terms of the Ontario government's Renewable Energy Standard Offer Program.
The plant covers 1100-1NaN-1 and contains about of modules,[11] which is about 1.3 million thin-film panels. At the completion of Phase II it was the largest solar power station in the world,[12] a title it held until the 2011 opening of Huanghe Hydropower Golmud Solar Park in China. The expected annual energy yield is about 120,000 MW·h, which if produced in a coal-fired plant, would require emission of 39,000 tonnes of CO2.