First floating solar plant in Albania starts operation

The first commercial-scale floating solar power unit in Albania has commenced operation.

The project is located at the Banja reservoir, where Norway’s Statkraft operates the 72 MW Banja hydropower plant. The unit, supplied by developer Ocean Sun, is made up of a floating ring and a thin membrane on which 1,536 solar panels float across an area of nearly 4,000 m2. 

In addition, 160 equal panels have been placed on land for comparison and documentation of the water’s cooling effect on the floating panels. The project is expected to continue its second implementation phase during the second half of 2021, whereby additional three floating units will be installed, with a combined additional capacity of 1.5 MWp.