Voltalia breaks ground on 260-MW solar plant in Brazil

• France's Voltalia SA (EPA: VLTSA) announced on Monday it has actually commenced the building of a 260-MW solar portion of the Serra Branca renewable energy complicated in Brazil's Rio Grande do Norte state.

The brand-new power plant being constructed includes 4 solar farms-- Solar Serra do Mel 3, 4, 5 and 6-- backed by a 14-year power sales contract with local utility Copel (BVMF: CPLE6).

SSM3-6 becomes part of the 2.4-GW Serra Branca wind and solar cluster, the largest among its kind around the world, and it is anticipated to be appointed during the initial half of 2023.

Along with this brand-new portion of Serra Branca, Voltalia is constructing the 320-MW SSM1 & 2 solar park. The French firm is the controlling investor of a significant portion of the projects in the cluster. It just recently sold a 33% equity stake in SSM1 & 2 to investment fund STOA.

Voltalia's chief executive officer Sebastien Clerc noted that over 80% of Serra Branca is now in operation or under construction.