20MW solar project sets out a path for Nissan’s journey to carbon neutrality

The largest solar park with a private wire connection in the whole of England will shortly be operational. The landmark project represents a sign of the future as large corporates grapple with increasingly stringent government targets around decarbonisation and mounting pressure from investors.

Equally, the sale of the site to an investment trust, which will now own the 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) entered into by Nissan, is also an indicator of investor appetite for funding and investing in such projects.

The 20MW solar project, which comprises more than 36,000 solar panels, represents an important milestone for Nissan on its EV36Zero project and the company’s journey to carbon neutrality. The motor manufacturer’s goal is to be carbon neutral across the life cycle of its products by 2050.

The new installation, located within Nissan’s manufacturing facility in Sunderland, England, will create enough renewable electricity generated at Nissan’s Sunderland plant to supply 20 per cent of the plant’s needs - enough to build every 100 per cent electric Nissan LEAF sold in Europe.

A number of incentives and targets around decarbonisation for large companies were unveiled at COP26. These included plans to force financial institutions and companies with shares listed on the London Stock Exchange to publish plans from 2023 on how they intend to achieve net zero emissions.

The project, delivered by Newcastle-based Engenera Renewables Group, was acquired last week by Atrato Onsite Energy. Atrato acquired the Engenera Renewables Group-owned development company Hylton Plantation Solar Farm – a special purpose vehicle formed to deliver the project in a £10.6m deal.

The behind-the-meter private wire solar installation was started late last year. Engenera Renewables Group carried out considerable design development and site clearance works to prepare the site for the construction of the solar array. As the project progresses, Engenera will retain responsibility for undertaking the EPC and O&M contracts for the installation and maintenance of the solar PV system.

Lloyd Lawson, chief strategy officer, Engenera, said: “The Nissan solar installation is a massive project and hugely important for a number of reasons. It represents the largest private wire installation Engenera has worked on to date, and also gives Nissan a big boost towards achieving its goals of becoming completely carbon neutral across the life cycle of its products by fiscal year 2050.”

Bryan Glendinning, CEO Engenera Renewables Group, added: “This installation at Nissan is a very exciting project for us, here at Engenera, and significant praise should go to our Chief Technical Officer, Luke Lobo, for his incredible work in getting the project to financial close.”

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

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