M+W Group receives order for a photovoltaic plant in Argentina

The global engineering and construction company M+W Group with headquarters in Stuttgart/Germany has won a large contract for design and construction of an integrated 70-megawatt photovoltaic production facility in Argentina. The Schmid Group (Freudenstadt/Germany) as general contractor and M+W Group bid jointly for the contract, and submitted the winning tender. M+W Group is responsible for engineering and construction, installation and project management as part of this important project.

The factory with a surface area of 13,000 square meters is being set up in the state capital of San Juan and will enable integrated production from monocrystalline silicon-ingot to the module from mid-2015. In a second stage of the development, the plan is to expand to include upstream polysilicon manufacture. The state energy supplier of the province of San Juan, Energia Provincial Sociedad del Estrado (EPSE) is awarding the contract.

"We are making an important contribution to increasing the proportion of the energy mix of EPSE generated by solar power. Annual solar radiation of over 2,300 kWh per square meter offers the best conditions for this," M+W Group CEO Jürgen Wild explained. "At the same time, M+W Group can expand its global presence to include one further, important country."

The glass-foil modules to be manufactured in the new factory as from 2015 should be used to supply energy to the gold and copper mines and the irrigation systems in San Juan province. At the same time, further Mercosur states are seen as potential sales markets. The project is among the most important initiatives in San Juan province and is also supported by the Argentine government, which was made clear by the personal visit of Argentina's President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner when the contract was signed.