Sungrow has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to collaborate on energy transition topics with the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) of Thailand.
The China-headquartered solar PV inverter and energy storage system manufacturer signed the MOU yesterday with PEA, which is a governmental body responsible for providing electricity and overseeing electricity network planning strategy in most of the country.
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Overseen by the Ministry of Interior, its roles include deciding the technological standards for equipment and solutions to be connected to the grid.
Sungrow said the two parties will cooperate on energy storage, green hydrogen, green bonds and blockchain technology with the intent to further Thailand’s aims of a low-carbon economy. Thailand is targeting carbon neutral status by 2050 and net zero emissions by 2065.
At the moment, renewable energy accounts for about 11% of the energy mix, but a target has been set to reach 37% – equivalent to about 2,766MW of renewables – by 2037.
According to the solar and storage tech company, the collaboration is a sign of growing demand for renewable energy in Southeast Asia, as well as an indicator that Thailand’s low-carbon energy transition will be driven forward by public-private partnerships like this one.
Sungrow has supplied more than 1GW of solar PV inverters in Thailand, while it was responsible for supplying what is thought to be Southeast Asia’s largest battery energy storage system (BESS) so far to a project in the country.
That project combined 49MW of Sungrow’s inverters with a 45MW/136.24MWh BESS for Thai renewable energy independent power producer (IPP) Super Energy. More recently, Sungrow supplied 6.9MWh BESS equipment to a project for the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, the country’s monopoly bulk power supplier.
“Currently, Thailand is catching the trend of solar PV-plus-BESS application and seeks more opportunities with technological innovations,” Sompong Dumrongongtragool, PEA deputy governor, said.
“Sungrow has been well-known for its consistent innovation and pioneering spirit. It also achieved significant renewable energy projects locally. We are glad to cooperate with Sungrow and jointly contribute to helping Thailand and other countries in southeastern Asia reach a net-zero carbon environment.”
Elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific region, in late October Sungrow announced 600MWh of new BESS contracts signed at the All-Energy Australia trade event in Melbourne, Australia, as the company launched its new liquid-cooled BESS solutions in the market. That included Solar River Project, South Australia’s largest DC-coupled solar-plus-storage project to date at 360MW/292MWh.
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