The Cercal photovoltaic plant, one of the large solar energy projects planned for the Alentejo coast, has received the final green light from the Portuguese Environment Agency, according to a statement from the promoter company. Aquila Clean Energy, a German capital company, indicates that substantial changes were introduced after the limitations indicated by the favorable environmental impact statement issued last year.
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One of the main changes, in response to the protests of the local populations, is the greater distance between the panels of the residential areas, maintaining a minimum distance of 250 meters from the houses, which, says Aquila, represents at least five times more than initially planned, which was only 50 meters. The company also highlights that no trees will be cut down for the installation of the plant and that, in accordance with the impact mitigation measures defined by the APA, a green curtain will be created around the panels and inside them. This curtain will result from the planting of six thousand trees on the site.
The reconfiguration of the project also aimed to allow coexistence between agricultural activities, grazing and pollinating agents, without waterproofing the soil in the plant area, minimizing the use of cement to allow rain to enter the soil. Meanwhile, the initial installation area of the project has been reduced.
The Cercal plant has an installed capacity of 275 MW and is expected to come into operation in 2024, with the energy produced expected to supply 141,000 homes. The proximity of the facility to residential areas and areas of rural tourism and tourist accommodation aroused strong criticism from some neighbors who launched a campaign against the project, which by the way is not the only large-scale one planned for the municipality of Santiago do Cacem.
The São Domingos plant would occupy more than 1,200 hectares, but it also had to reconfigure its size, according to the APA. Even so, the project that was submitted to public consultation last year provided for the installation of almost two million photovoltaic panels spread over four parks with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts and an investment of one billion euros. The THSIS power plant of the promoter Sunshining still does not have the green light from the APA.
Source: Observadora
