The municipality of Izamal, Mexico, hired Martifer Solar and Citelum, a provider of public lighting, to provide the city with solar energy and LED lighting. The Girasol project will be developed through a 15-year contract between Citelum and Izamal.
Martifer Solar will serve as the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the 1.46 MW solar power plant portion of the Girasol project. The PV plant will be assembled with 4,860 polycrystalline modules in a fixed position and will have a production capacity of 2.1 GWh per year. It will be built on about 10,000 square meters of land donated by the city of Izamal.
The power from the 1.46 MW solar PV installation will supply energy to the LED lighting portion of the project. Citelum will completely retrofit the existing streetlights to more efficient LED technology, will upgrade illumination around the municipal buildings and will provide video mapping to promote tourism.
The energy secretary of Mexico, Pedro Joaquin Coldwell, recently announced the goal for Mexico to source 33 percent of its installed electricity capacity from renewables by 2018.
Recently, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) said it is working with the 21st Century Power Partnership to help strengthen Mexico’s renewable energy effort and will provide financial support.