Plans For Latvia’s ‘Largest’ Solar Power Plant

• European Energy has announced its 1^st project in Latvia, a solar power plant with 110 MW capacity
• It will come up in Tārgale, Ventspils region and is planned to be realized in 2024 to generate an estimated amount of 110,000 MWh annually
• The company currently has more than 1 GW pipeline of solar and wind energy projects in Latvia

Denmark based renewable energy developer European Energy A/S chose the opening of its office in Latvia to announce its maiden project in the country with 110 MW capacity that it claims as the largest solar park in the European nation.

Christened Tārgale solar park, the facility is planned to come up in Tārgale, Ventspils region of Latvia. European Energy targets to grid connect the project in 2024 and once it is fully up and running it will generate close to 110,000 MWh of green energy annually.

Electricity generated by the plant on completion will be enough to suffice annual consumption of around 52,000 households.

European Energy claims to have more than 1 GW development pipeline of both solar and wind energy projects in the country.

"Now is the right time to invest in renewable energy projects both due to rising energy prices, the Green Deal and the competitiveness of renewable solutions," said Head of Riga office of European Energy Latvia, Alnis Bāliņš. "Nowadays, solar and wind farm technologies have developed to the point where we can safely start deploying them in the current market conditions without any subsidies."

Referring to the urgency to act on energy transition for energy independence with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development, Gatis Zamurs said, "Energy independence since February 24^th has become more than an opportunity to save money or to protect the environment. Now, it is a matter of not funding the aggressor and the deaths of innocent people. The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development is eager to cooperate, leading Latvian society forward to a sheltered and sustainable future, contributing to the common prosperity of Europe."

Latvia has a high amount of renewable energy on its grid currently, but it is heavily dominated by hydro/marine energy (see EU Renewable Energy Share 37% In 2020). At the end of 2020, solar accounted for only 5 MW of its electricity capacity and grew by 3 MW to a total of 8 MW at the end of 2021, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).