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Mercur Will Install A Photovoltaic Solar Power Plant In RS That Will Have 2,652 Solar Panels Capable Of Suppling 50% Of The Energy Use At The Company’s Headquarters And Eventually 100%
Mercur, an industry located in Santa Cruz do Sul (RS), which operates in the health and education sector, will install a photovoltaic solar power plant in the municipality. Construction will start this month and will take place at its headquarters in the Industrial District, occupying an area of approximately 2 hectares.
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Mercur Plant Will Have An Installed Capacity Of 1.18 MWp
The first phase of the investment in RS will have a capacity to generate 1.18 MWp, through 2,652 solar panels. According to Mercur’s technicians, the photovoltaic solar power plant will be able to supply about 50% of the energy use at the company’s headquarters. The installed capacity of the investment can be expanded in the future, potentially reaching a total of 2.4 MWp, which represents 100% of the use at the headquarters.
According to the project manager, Paulo Boufleur, with the installation of the plant, another step is taken towards reducing socio-environmental and human impacts, as well as contributing to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals regarding Affordable and Clean Energy.
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Brazilian scientists are simultaneously advancing two research projects on clean hydrogen and driving solutions that could transform the energy matrix, enhance industrial competitiveness, and accelerate large-scale emission reduction targets.
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Advancement in renewable energy: A R$ 150 million project launched by Petrobras and Finep aims to create state-of-the-art electrolyzers for green hydrogen, strengthening national research and preparing Brazil to compete in a billion-dollar energy market.
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Illiterate or semi-literate grandmothers were trained to repair solar systems, open rural workshops, and light up homes that still depended on kerosene.
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The world has bet on green hydrogen as the fuel of the future, but now faces the side effect: producing 1 kilogram requires about 9 liters of ultrapure water, and the largest projects on the planet are precisely in the driest regions of the Earth, where water is already scarce for people.
This occurs by reducing the need for transmitting energy over long distances, which leads to significant waste. The project contributes to a decrease in the use of thermal energy and the need for creating new hydropower dams, which generate environmental impacts.
Photovoltaic Solar Power Plant Will Be Fully Operational In 2022
The construction in RS has been planned by Mercur for a long time, but its start was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The environmental impact caused in the area where the photovoltaic solar power plant will be constructed will be compensated by planting trees in a preservation area, according to the assessment and determination of the report developed by the State Foundation for Environmental Protection (Fepam), which authorized Mercur’s project in RS. The expected date for the plant to be fully operational is February next year and will be done alongside the company Parceria Solar.
The state of Rio Grande do Sul is the third largest solar energy generator in Brazil, with an installed capacity of approximately 681.2 MW. RS reduces, with photovoltaic solar energy, the emission of 9.5 million tons of carbon dioxide released into the air and generates more than half a million new jobs in the sector. 1.4% of the electricity supply in Brazil is generated by solar energy, just in September 2020.
