Ameresco Sunel Energy wins 83 MW solar project in northern Greece

Energy infrastructure solutions provider Ameresco and its joint venture partner Sunel Group were selected for the installation of an 83 MW solar power plant. The location is in Kozani in Greece’s Western Macedonia province – the country’s coal hub, which is undergoing transformation.

German energy infrastructure asset manager Luxcara has awarded an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to joint venture Ameresco Sunel Energy. The Kozani solar project in northern Greece is for nearly 130,000 photovoltaic modules on one-axis trackers, for 83 MW in peak capacity.

The deal includes a medium-voltage grid connection and an extension of the 400/33 kV high-voltage substation. Construction works are already underway, the companies revealed. Luxcara holds a majority stake in the project, its first in the country. The site is in the Western Macedonia province. It is Greece’s only remaining coal mining and power hub, undergoing decarbonization and modernization.

“Projects like this reflect the growing maturity of the Greek renewable energy market, where scale, structure, and long-term stability are becoming increasingly important. As Ameresco Sunel Energy, we are focused on supporting this shift by delivering projects that meet the evolving expectations of international investors,” said Ameresco Sunel’s Vice President Konstantinos Zygouras.

The deal includes a medium-voltage grid connection and an extension of the 400/33 kV high-voltage substation

Investment Manager at Luxcara Lorenz Hahn praised the joint venture for being a trusted partner in advancing his firm’s solar power investment in the country. The project received support through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan Greece 2.0, the company said.

It also revealed that it reached a financial close for the investment. Luxcara signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Amazon. It follows one that they agreed for the Önusberget wind farm project in Sweden, of more than 750 MW. Piraeus Bank and Optima bank provided loans.

Founded in 2000 in the United States, Ameresco is an energy infrastructure solutions provider. It has headquarters in Framingham, Massachusetts, and more than 1,500 employees. Sunel specializes in photovoltaics, battery energy storage systems and energy efficiency.

Headquartered in Athens, the company operates regional offices in London, Valencia, Milan, Bucharest and Tashkent, totaling over 400 employees. Since its establishment in 2006, Sunel developed, designed, and executed more than 2 GW of solar projects worldwide. It is currently executing more than 2 GW of PV projects in Greece, the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Romania and Uzbekistan.

Hamburg-based Luxcara acquires, structures, finances and operates energy projects with a long-term buy-build-operate approach. Its portfolio comprises wind and solar power assets, battery energy storage systems (BESS), charging stations for electric vehicles, and electrolyzers for the production of green hydrogen.