Testing starts at GGF-backed Blue 1 solar power plant in Albania

TÜV Nord is testing the first of two parts of Project Blue in Fier in western Albania. Bifacial modules in Blue 1 with 67.5 MW in peak capacity are placed on trackers that turn them toward sunlight from east to west.

One of the biggest photovoltaic systems in the Western Balkans is nearing commercial operation. Blessed Investment and Matrix Konstruksion reached an important milestone in their Project Blue in Albania. They are developing it without subsidies.

The Dutch subsidiary of Germany-based standards certification firm TÜV Nord is testing Blue 1, Matrix said. It is a domestic construction company. The first of the two equal parts has 67.5 MW in peak capacity and it is set to feed output into the transmission grid via a 50 MW connection.

The site is in Sheq Marinas in Topoja on the Adriatic coast. The district is part of western Albania’s Fier county, which hosts most of the country’s photovoltaic projects. Blue 1 consists of 103,020 solar panels, the company said. They are mounted on trackers moving them from east to west. The modules are bifacial and with dual glass.

The Green for Growth Fund (GGF) approved a loan one year ago that covers up to 75% of the costs. Construction works started in July 2022.

Photovoltaic system Karavasta in Albania, with 140 MW in peak capacity, was recently completed. It is the biggest in the Western Balkans.