| Bavaria Solarpark | |
|---|---|
 An Avalon Waterways river cruise ship passing in front of the Bavaria Solarpark | |
| Country | Germany |
| Location | Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz, Bavaria |
| Coordinates | 49°9′30″N11°26′0″E / 49.15833°N 11.43333°E Coordinates: 49°9′30″N11°26′0″E / 49.15833°N 11.43333°E |
| Status | Operational |
| Construction began | December 2004 |
| Commission date | June 2005 |
| Owner(s) | Deutsche Structured Finance (DSF) |
| Operator(s) | SunPower |
| Solar farm | |
| Type | Flat-panel PV |
| Site area | 40 ha (98.8 acres) |
| Power generation | |
| Units operational | 57,600 |
| Nameplate capacity | 10.08 MW |
| Annual net output | 10.85 GWh |
The Bavaria Solarpark is a group of three photovoltaic power stations in different locations in Germany. Its total capacity amounts to 10 megawatts (MW) and consists of the following distinct solar farms south of Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz, in Bavaria:
A photovoltaic power station, also known as a solar park, is a large-scale photovoltaic system designed for the supply of merchant power into the electricity grid. They are differentiated from most building-mounted and other decentralised solar power applications because they supply power at the utility level, rather than to a local user or users. They are sometimes also referred to as solar farms or solar ranches, especially when sited in agricultural areas. The generic expression utility-scale solar is sometimes used to describe this type of project.
Nameplate capacity, also known as the rated capacity, nominal capacity, installed capacity, or maximum effect, is the intended full-load sustained output of a facility such as a power plant, electric generator, a chemical plant, fuel plant, metal refinery, mine, and many others. Nameplate capacity is the number registered with authorities for classifying the power output of a power station usually expressed in megawatts (MW).
Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz is the capital of the Neumarkt district in the administrative region of the Upper Palatinate, in Bavaria, Germany. With a population of about 40,000, Neumarkt is the seat of various projects, and acts as the economic and cultural center of the western Upper Palatinate, along with Nürnberg, Ingolstadt, and Regensburg.
- The 6.3 MW Solarpark Mühlhausen
- The 1.9 MW Solarpark Günching
- The 1.9 MW Solarpark Minihof
The Bavaria Solarpark was constructed and is operated by the American company SunPower. It consists of 57,600 solar panels (model PowerLight NT-5AE3D by Sharp) mounted on SunPower's solar trackers and covers a total area of 40 hectares (99 acres). [1] Inaugurated on 30 June 2005, the solar farm was grid-connected six months later in December 2005. For a few months, the Solarpark Mühlhausen was the world's largest photovoltaic power station.
SunPower Corporation is an American energy company that designs and manufactures crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells and solar panels based on an all-back-contact solar cell invented at Stanford University. The company is majority owned by Total, the fourth largest publicly listed energy company in the world and is publicly traded on the NASDAQ as SPWR.
A solar tracker is a device that orients a payload toward the Sun. Payloads are usually solar panels, parabolic troughs, fresnel reflectors, lenses or the mirrors of a heliostat.
| Year(a) | Name of PV power station | Country | Capacity MW |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Lugo |  | 1 |
| 1985 | Carrisa Plain | | 5.6 |
| 2005 | Bavaria Solarpark (Mühlhausen) |  | 6.3 |
| 2006 | Erlasee Solar Park | | 11.4 |
| 2008 | Olmedilla Photovoltaic Park |  | 60 |
| 2010 | Sarnia Photovoltaic Power Plant |  | 97 |
| 2011 | Huanghe Hydropower Golmud Solar Park |  | 200 |
| 2012 | Agua Caliente Solar Project | | 290 |
| 2014 | Topaz Solar Farm (b) | | 550 |
| 2015 | Longyangxia Dam Solar Park | | 850 |
| 2016 | Tengger Desert Solar Park | | 1547 |
| Also see list of photovoltaic power stations and list of noteworthy solar parks (a) year of final commissioning (b) capacity given in MWAC otherwise in MWDC | |||
