The first of the 10 plants located in the Puglia region of southern Italy and of 1MW each was grid-connected in November, while all the other plants are expected to be connected by the end of 2010.
The Degennaro Group, which has developed the projects in its capacity as the engineering, procurement and construction contractor, will continue as the operations and maintenance contractor for the plants.
The investment has been financed through the European Renewable Energy Fund, which Platina closed in March 2010, supporting its investment strategy focused on assembly of a portfolio of operational renewable electricity generation projects across Europe.
This new investment brings Platina’s portfolio of operational renewable energy projects to 162MW, including 31MW of operational solar PV projects, a further 82MW in construction and over 400MW of projects in development.
Platina Partners partner Joseph Muthu said that the company is delighted with this investment and the opportunity to work with a strong local partner in the Degennaro Group.
"We have been seeking the right opportunity to invest in Italy and see it as one of the key European solar markets. In Puglia, there are plenty of PV projects with planning consent but no grid connection. Clearly this operational plant does not suffer from this bottleneck," Muthu said.
