Italian energy company ERG has reached an agreement to acquire 100% of the solar power plant Garnacha Solar, located in Toro (Zamora). The facility, which will have a peak installed capacity of 149 megawatts, is at an advanced stage of construction and will begin commercial operations in the last quarter of this year. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter. A price of 170 million euros has been agreed, with an equity value of 80.5 million euros.

The purchase consolidates ERG’s presence in Spain by increasing its installed capacity. The company, which arrived in Spain in 2021, acquired two projects that year, one in Castilla-La Mancha and one in Andalusia, with 50 megawatts and 41.6 megawatts of peak power output respectively. On closing the operation, ERG will increase its installed capacity to more than 240 megawatts.

Twelve-year purchase agreement
The agreement with the seller, German company IBV Solar Parks, commits ERG or a subsidiary to purchase 100% of the shares in Garnacha Solar, SL, owner of the solar plant of the same name located in the province of Zamora in Spain’s Castile and León region. One of its most attractive features is the power purchase agreement (PPA) under which 70% of its production is purchased by a multinational company for the next twelve years.

The facility will be equipped with state-of-the-art bifacial solar panels with trackers, allowing it to achieve a load factor of 22%. Based on this figure, which compares actual production with the maximum that can be achieved, Garnacha Solar will produce around 280 gigawatt hours per year.

ERG CEO Paolo Merli explains that “the acquisition of the Garnacha PV solar plant, the largest in terms of capacity in the group’s renewables portfolio, consolidates our presence in Spain, where we will reach 266 megawatts of peak power by the end of the year, with a portfolio of more than a gigawatt of solar power under development. With this transaction, ERG attains an important position in the country, with possible future industrial synergies as part of the geographic and technological diversification process in the 2022-2026 business plan”.

^{Photo: ERG}