British solar project developer Lightsource bp has expanded its business in Europe, and entered Polish solar market with a co-development deal for 757 MW capacity. It expects to incur €500 million capital expenditure to bring this pipeline online.
Close to half of this pipeline is expected to be ready for construction in 2022. All these 99 projects will be located in Zachodnio-pomorskie, Lubuskie, Dolnośląskie and Wielkopolskie regions and co-developed with a local renewable energy firm.
Part of the power generated by this capacity will be sold in the open market, and through bilateral contracts with large corporations. Lightsource bp said these projects will also participate in future renewable energy auctions in Poland.
As Poland moves away from coal and share of renewables grows, companies like Lightsource bp will be making a beeline for a piece of the pie. The company said this 757 MW project pipeline provides it with a stable foundation for its long-term GW scale development ambitions in the country.
With an initial project pipeline in its kitty, the management plans to expand further in Poland as the European nation also plans to add local solar manufacturing 'on top of existing inverter suppliers to build-out its local solar value chain even further'.
"Entering the Polish marketplace is a significant milestone for us, and we have done so with a sizeable portfolio, said International Business Development Director for Lightsource bp's global expansion, Vlasios Souflis. "The scope for growth in solar is huge, as renewables will be required to double their share on the grid in a short space of time."
In May 2021, Lightsource bp entered the Greek solar market with a co-development deal with Kiefer TEK for 640 MW capacity (see Lightsource BP Enters Greece; Expands Iberian Portfolio).
These plans are in line with the company's aim to grow its solar power project development portfolio to 25 GW by 2025 for which it raised $1.8 billion from 10 global financial institutions in September 2021 (see Lightsource BP Targeting 25 GW Solar By 2025).