March 17 (Renewables Now) - Duke Energy Florida, part of utility Duke Energy Corp (NYSE:DUK), will this month initiate the construction of its first floating solar plant in the state’s Polk County.
The photovoltaic (PV) array will consist of over 1,800 modules with a total capacity of roughly 1 MW, the parent company said on Thursday.
The demo installation will cover around 2 acres (0.8 ha) of water surface on an existing cooling pond at the Duke Energy Hines Energy Complex in Bartow. Its construction is expected to take about six months to complete.
"Unique pilots like floating solar are helping us better understand the capabilities of innovative clean energy technologies that can benefit our Florida customers and communities now and in the future,” said Melissa Seixas, Duke Energy Florida state president.
The project will be executed as part of Duke Energy's Vision Florida programme, through which the utility aims to test innovative technologies such as microgrids and battery energy storage. At present, the Florida-based company owns 10.5 GW of power generation capacity supplying its 1.9 million residential, commercial and industrial customers within its service area.
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