Abu Dhabi firm to build 500 KW solar plant in Tonga

Abu Dhabi's Masdar and the Government of Tonga have signed an MOU for a 500 kW solar plant in Vava'u Island.

Masdar, a renewable energy company, will be in charge of the implementation and construction the plant. The project is financed by a grant provided by Abu Dhabi Fund for Development and is intended to deliver around 13 percent of Tonga's annual electricity demand.

Commissioning the photovoltaic power plant is part of the Tonga Energy Road Map - a ten year plan to increase the quality of access to modern energy services through an environmentally sustainable manner.

Announcing the initiative, the Honourable Minister of Lands, Survey, Natural Resources, Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lord Ma'afu said: "The project is another strong demonstration of His Majesty's commitment to promoting climate change mitigation through clean energy reform and by integrating green power generation to produce 13 percent of the annual electricity demand. The project will also result in strong social and economic benefits through a reduction in the price of electricity and saving 180,000 L of diesel fuel."

In 2011, a team of technical experts from Masdar studied the island's grid system to mitigate any potential impacts as a result of the implementation of the solar plant. The grid on Vava'u has an installed capacity of 1.87 MW with a base demand of around 500 kW during the day and a peak power demand reaching 1 MW during the early hours of the evening. The solar plant will deliver more than 50 percent of the base load during the day.

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