Covaci Solar Park, which will be one of the world’s largest thin-film photovoltaic (PV) power system, is being built on a 60 ha plot of land to the north of Timişoara

Timisoara

Timișoara is the capital city of Timiș County, in western Romania. One of the largest Romanian cities, with an estimated population of 311,586 inhabitants , and considered the informal capital city of the historical region of Banat, Timișoara is the main social, economic and cultural center in the...

 in Romania

Romania

Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...

. The power plant will be a 35-megawatt solar power

Solar power

Solar energy, radiant light and heat from the sun, has been harnessed by humans since ancient times using a range of ever-evolving technologies. Solar radiation, along with secondary solar-powered resources such as wind and wave power, hydroelectricity and biomass, account for most of the available...

 system using state-of-the-art thin film

Thin film

A thin film is a layer of material ranging from fractions of a nanometer to several micrometers in thickness. Electronic semiconductor devices and optical coatings are the main applications benefiting from thin film construction....

 technology, and should be finished by the end of 2011. 480,000 First Solar

First Solar

First Solar, Inc. is an American manufacturer of thin film photovoltaic modules, or solar panels, and a provider to PV power plants of supporting services that include finance, construction, maintenance and end-of-life panel recycling...

 thin-film modules will be used, which will supply 35,000 MWh of electricity per year.

The installation will be in the Timiş County

Timis County

Timiș , , Banat Bulgarian: ) is a county of western Romania, in the historical region Banat, with the county seat at Timișoara. It is the largest county in Romania in terms of land area....

 in western Romania, to be built on a 60 hectares plot of land in the commune of Sânandrei

Sânandrei

Sânandrei is a commune in Timiş County, Banat, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Carani, Covaci and Sânandrei.In 1930, Sânandrei was 79.6% German. By 2002, it was over 92% Romanian.-Geography:...

. The investment cost for the Covaci solar park amounts to some Euro 180 million.

See also

• Energy policy of the European Union
  Energy policy of the European Union
  Although the European Union has legislated in the area of energy policy for many years, and evolved out of the European Coal and Steel Community, the concept of introducing a mandatory and comprehensive European energy policy was only approved at the meeting of the European Council on 27 October...
  
  
• Photovoltaics
  Photovoltaics
  Photovoltaics is a method of generating electrical power by converting solar radiation into direct current electricity using semiconductors that exhibit the photovoltaic effect. Photovoltaic power generation employs solar panels composed of a number of solar cells containing a photovoltaic material...
  
  
• Renewable energy commercialization
  Renewable energy commercialization
  Renewable energy commercialization involves the deployment of three generations of renewable energy technologies dating back more than 100 years. First-generation technologies, which are already mature and economically competitive, include biomass, hydroelectricity, geothermal power and heat...
  
  
• Renewable energy in the European Union
  Renewable energy in the European Union
  The countries of the European Union are currently the number two global leaders in the development and application of renewable energy. Promoting the use of renewable energy sources is important both to the reduction of the EU's dependence on foreign energy imports, and in meeting targets to combat...
  
  
• Solar power in Romania
  Solar power in Romania
  Solar power in Romania had in 2007 an installed capacity of 0.81 MWp. Romania is located in an area with a good solar potential of 210 sunny days per year and with an annual solar energy flux between 1,000 kWh/ m2/year and 1,300 kWh/ m2/year. From this total amount around 600 to 800 kWh/ m2/year is...