In a few days, the Nueva Línea photovoltaic solar park, located in the town of Delicias, in the municipality of Puerto Padre, is scheduled to be synchronized with the National Electricity System (SEN).
Las Tunas, Cuba – In a conversation with Carlos Rafael Arias Sobrino, the director general of the Las Tunas Electric Company, we learned what it could mean for the province and the country.
"It represents having 21.8 Megawatts (MW) available to incorporate into electricity generation. This would be a considerable help in the recovery of the electricity system, contributing to the country's generation through renewable energy sources, with the consequent reduction in the use of fossil fuels.”
"For the province, it is beneficial to have its fifth solar park incorporated into the territory's electrical infrastructure."
Cuban Minister of Energy and Mines Vicente De la O Levy, in an interview with the Granma newspaper, clarified that solar energy will not solve the nighttime energy deficit. Although the solar parks being built now will contribute 1,000 MW by 2025, their generation is intermittent (daytime), so battery storage systems will be implemented.
These will serve two functions: stabilize the system against fluctuations (such as clouds that reduce generation) and, subsequently, store energy to inject into the SEN at night. Projects are already underway to install 100 MW of solar energy stabilization batteries and 150 MW of storage for energy delivery.
Regarding the possibility of using solar parks as energy "islands" in emergencies (such as hurricanes), the Cuban minister clarified that they require storage systems to be autonomous. He emphasized that the parks contribute to the SEN (National Energy System), and their combined contribution will gradually contribute to reducing blackouts.
"Today, all solar parks contribute to the SEN (National Energy System. Their sum, plus thermal energy, plus distributed generation, plus everything else installed, ensures there is no deficit in the system," De la O Levy emphasized.
There is a popular belief that having a generating source of this type in the community, as in Delicias, its residents will be free from blackouts.
"When they are completed, the impacts will decrease as a result of an additional contribution to the SEN. Now, under exceptional circumstances, they can contribute directly to the immediate surroundings, and if they have a battery, even better."
The evidence came to the province on March 14th when the complete disconnection of the SEN occurred at 8:10 p.m. In this regard, the director of provincial electric dispatch, Yordis Vega Espinosa, explained to 26 that, at that time, they had 1.5 megawatts from the Manatí 1 and 2 photovoltaic parks, which were synchronized with the "island."
"This helped us," Vega Espinosa points out. "From the 29 MW we had at that time, we will now reach 30.5 MW. It all depends on the weather and the available generation plants in the diesel battery, the leader in this process."
The province already has the experience, and the professionals in charge of leading the connection and disconnection processes -if necessary- have the required tools and training. The synchronization of the Nueva Línea photovoltaic solar park, meanwhile, represents a bit of calm amidst adversity.
