Vice-Ambassador of Germany: Talin-1 power station will pioneer the development of solar energy in Armenia

ArmInfo. The launch of a solar  power plant in Armenian Talin is a real symbol of cooperation between  the Armenian government, Armenian institutions and the German-  Armenian Fund (GAF) and the German bank KfW. The project will also  pioneer the development of solar energy in Armenia - currently KfW  provides funding for 6-7 analogous stations.

On November 7, Vice-  Ambassador of Germany to Armenia Klaus Wendelberger stated this  during the launch of the Talin-1 solar power station in the city of  the same name, with a nominal capacity of 1 MW.

As the deputy head of the German diplomatic mission in Armenia noted,  renewable energy in Armenia, as well as all over the world, is of  great importance for ensuring sustainable development and  preservation of the environment. It is also competitive in  price-quality ratio, noted Klaus Wendelberger.

The Vice-Ambassador noted the efficiency with which the Armenian  authorities prepared the legislative field and institutional  framework for the consistent development of renewable energy in the  republic. "It is extremely surprised and delighted that the solar  power plant of this level has become a reality ahead of schedule, an  indicator that such infrastructural projects in Armenia can be  implemented in record time," he said.

In Armenian Talin, Aragatsotn region on November 7, the largest solar  power plant in Armenia was launched. The project was implemented  thanks to a group of investors (Eduard Marutyan, Araik Karapetyan,  Zaven Sargsyan and Hayk Chobanyan) and co-financed under the  "Renewable Energy Promotion" program by the German bank KfW jointly  with the German-Armenian Fund (GAF) through "Conversbank" CJSC. The  volume of investments invested in the project amounted to $ 1  million. The power plant covers an area of 1,800 square meters, and  its nominal capacity reaches 1 MW, which is enough to provide  electricity to 400 families. The park consists of 3,700  polycrystalline solar cells that convert solar radiation into direct  current electricity. After that, it enters 14 inverters, which  convert it into alternating current. With the help of a transformer  substation, the voltage is brought to the level necessary for  transmission of electricity to a single network. The project was  implemented in a very short time - up to one month: the start was  given on October 18, the engineering work took 20 days.

According to the investment program approved by the government of the  country, it is planned to build solar stations in Armenia at 6 sites  with a total installed capacity of up to 110 MW. At the first stage,  a site near the "Masrik" community was chosen, where a solar station  with a capacity of 55 MW will be built.  The total cost of the  program for the construction of solar power plants in Armenia is $  129 million. Of the six surveyed regions, the Spanish consulting  company Aries Engineering has already submitted feasibility studies.  They relate to the localities of "Masrik" in Gegharkunik region and  "Dashtadem" in Aragatsotn region, studies on the remaining four  localities continue. One of the main conditions of the contest will  be the tariff offered by investors. The advantage will be the company  that offers the minimum tariff. The climate investment fund for the  development of alternative energy provided Armenia $ 28 million, of  which $ 2 million - a grant and $ 26 million - a loan. The loan terms  are soft - 0.25% per annum with a maturity of 40 years and a grace  period for payments in the first 20 years. Grant to study the  localities, develop a feasibility study for the project, calculated  at a station of 100-120 MW capacity.