The new photovoltaic park in Fira de Barcelona's Gran Via Exhibition Centre is operational
It is one of the largest photovoltaic power plants
The solar power photovoltaic plant installed on the roofs of Fira de Barcelona's Gran Via Exhibition Centre has become operational. The councillor for Economy and Finance, Antoni Castells; the president of Fira de Barcelona and of Fira 2000, Josep Lluís Bonet; the CEO of Fira de Barcelona, Agustín Cordón, and the CEO of Fira 2000, Francesc Solà, have today visited the new photovoltaic park, one of the largest roof-installed systems in Spain and in the world.
The installation cost 17.7 million euros, 2.1 million euros less than the initial estimate. The Institut Català d´Energia (Catalan Institute of Energy), ICAEN, participated in the conception and definition of the project, which is financed and coordinated by Fira 2000.
The new photovoltaic park is a symbol of the new pathway followed by Catalonia in the field of energy and commitment to renewable energy. Catalonia aims to lead the change in energy systems by promoting energy saving and efficiency, encouraging research in the field of renewable energy and guaranteeing safety and quality of supply by building the necessary infrastructures.
Installing solar plants on rooftops is a priority for the Government because they are environmentally friendly and, at the same time, make cost-effective use of free space on roofs to generate energy. For this reason, the Generalitat is promoting its development in public buildings, via contact with different administrations and also private companies. One of the measures of the Strategic Agreement for the internationalisation, occupational quality and competitiveness of the Catalan economy, renewed last July, is the promotion of photovoltaic panels on roofs of industrial plants and public buildings.
The photovoltaic installation of the Gran Via Exhibition Centre covers 135,000 m2 on the roofs of the existing six pavilions. With 3.36 MW, it provides an annual supply of 4.4 GWh of electricity, equivalent to the energy consumption of 980 dwellings occupied by 4 people, and avoids the annual emission of 2,047 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere. In a second phase, the plant will cover an additional 30,000 m2, after the completion of pavilions 5 and 7, providing a further 1.2 MW.
Barcelona, 27th of October 2008