Naturgy promotes offshore photovoltaics

BarcelonaThe energy company Naturgy, through its innovation platform Innovahub, is promoting a pioneering project in Spain for the development of floating photovoltaic technology in the open sea, in collaboration with the start-up Spanish company BlueNewables, as reported this Tuesday by the company chaired by Francisco Reynés. This initiative, which has received a grant from IDAE – a state agency – within the framework of the Renmarinas program, seeks to explore new renewable solutions that will advance the decarbonization of energy. The project involves the design, manufacture, commissioning, and monitoring of two 500 kW units, optimized to operate in ocean environments, according to the company. The technology used is based on an innovative catamaran-type design, which allows for the use of more economical floats and the placement of solar panels further from the direct impact of waves, thus improving the maintenance and performance of the generation panels. Naturgy explained that, within the framework of its collaboration with BlueNewables, they will work together on the exchange of technical, operational, strategic, and economic information derived from the development of the pilot project, both during manufacturing and the testing phase. This collaboration will extend for two years from the system's launch, including performance data, technical issues, operational reports, costs, lessons learned, and technology deployment strategies.

Under construction

The system is currently under construction at the San Enrique shipyard in Vigo, and commissioning is scheduled for March 2026, after which a phase of real-world testing will begin in the port of Valencia. Floating offshore photovoltaics represent a strategic avenue for knowledge acquisition due to their great potential for hybridization with other marine technologies, especially wind power. offshoreas well as for its applications in the decarbonization of ports and in projects stand-alone on islands.