Neoenergia starts 22-MWp Pernambuco solar with 49-MWh battery

• Neoenergia has begun building a 22-MWp solar plant with a 49-MWh battery in Pernambuco, pairing daytime generation with evening and contingency support.

Brazilian utility Neoenergia has broken ground on a 22-MWp solar project in Pernambuco that will be coupled with a 49-MWh battery energy storage system (BESS), underscoring how hybrid plants are becoming the default design for new build in Brazil’s Northeast. The combination aims to shift surplus midday output into evening peaks, reduce curtailment on bright, low-load days, and provide fast frequency and voltage support to the local network.

Technically, the site follows a lender-friendly blueprint: high-efficiency modules—many likely bifacial—mounted on single-axis trackers to stretch production into shoulder hours; DC/AC ratios tuned for robust annual yield; and plant-level controllers aligned with Brazilian grid-code requirements for reactive power, ride-through, and ramp-rate limits. The four-dozen-megawatt-hour BESS, built with containerized lithium-ion blocks and sectionalized fire protection, will operate behind grid-forming inverters, enabling synthetic inertia and rapid response during disturbances.

For Neoenergia, the project is a live testbed for stacking revenues—energy, demand-charge management, and ancillary services—while honing a repeatable EPC and operations playbook. Co-location keeps capex in check: PV and storage share substation infrastructure and interconnection, trimming conversion losses and simplifying controls compared with standalone assets. A unified SCADA layer will co-optimize dispatch, maintain state of charge for high-value windows, and flag underperforming strings early via thermal imaging and IV-curve analytics.

Community measures are baked in: construction traffic and dust management, drainage sized for intense rain, and landscaping to soften views. Biodiversity-friendly groundcover beneath arrays stabilizes soils, while end-of-life plans outline recycling pathways for modules and batteries—now a standard requirement for lenders and municipalities.

For Pernambuco’s grid, the hybrid plant is a local shock absorber that helps smooth price spikes and integrates growing renewable penetration without leaning as heavily on diesel peakers. For consumers, it’s another step toward cleaner, steadier supply in a region where solar resource is world-class but evening demand is rising.

With site work underway, the focus turns to long-lead electrical gear—transformers, switchgear, protection systems—that often dictate schedules. Staged energization can bring blocks online sooner, translating engineering drawings into electrons on wires.