The Mauriti Photovoltaic Project. (Photo provided by the correspondent)
The Mauriti Photovoltaic (PV) Project in the state of Ceará in northeastern Brazil was successfully connected to the grid and began operation at full capacity recently.
The project is the largest solar PV plant constructed by a Hunan-based enterprise in South America, undertaken by the Zhongnan Engineering Corporation Limited of the Power Construction Corporation of China, under the EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) mode.
Spanning dozens of permanent environmentally protected areas across Brazil, this project has been recognized as an exemplary model of high-quality construction and a high-standard ecological conservation, based on the joint efforts of Chinese and Brazilian builders.
The Mauriti PV project covers around eight square kilometers, in areas with large numbers of mammals, birds, and fishes.
In order to protect these animals, the project specially set up an environmental protection team consisting of ten biologists, ten archaeologists, three veterinarians, and three veterinary assistants, establishing a temporary wildlife rescue center. As of the completion of the project, a total of 1,959 wild animals have been rescued and relocated safely.
Before commencing construction every day, the environmental protection team patrolled the construction areas, seeking and relocating the potentially affected wildlife with drones and infrared cameras.
According to the project manager Zhou Qi, the project has spent approximately 5 to 10 percent of its total investment in social costs, covering environmental management, ecological conservation, and animal rescue.
With a total installed capacity of 425 MW, the project can generate nearly one billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity annually on average, reducing CO₂ emissions by approximately 8.2 million tons per year.
The project employs "smart tracking technology," which allows photovoltaic modules to dynamically adjust angles and directions to maximize green energy generation. Moreover, the horizontal single-axis trackers utilized in the project can increase power output by approximately 24 percent compared to fixed-mount ones.
Notably, this is Brazil's first photovoltaic plant adopting N-type TOPCon modules. Compared to the conventional P-type, these modules can significantly reduce power attenuation, optimize temperature coefficients for high-temperature environments, and increase energy output by 1.2 percent.
Mauriti, a small city with only 40,000 residents, has seen remarkable changes brought by the PV project. Based on the localization principle, 80 percent of the managers and all of the workers in the project are locals. “It has brought jobs and income to us. Many local people got employed instead of seeking jobs afar, while skilled technical personnel have been attracted to join. Local commerce is bustling," said a local resident who worked in the project.
City proper of Mauriti.
Since its inauguration in March 2023, the Mauriti PV Project has created over 3,000 jobs for local residents, generated contracts valued at over one billion CNY in such sectors as technical services, legal support, electrical equipment, and engineering construction, and contributed over 50 million BRL to the tax revenue of Brazil. Recently, the project was awarded the Annual Municipal Contribution Award by the Mauriti Municipal Government.