Floating Solar: DNV Advises on Indonesian Floating Solar Photovoltaic Project

Floating solar photovoltaic (PV), initially considered a niche technology, is now the fastest-growing solar PV category, alongside ground-mounted utility-scale solar and rooftop PV. As of August 2020, more than 60 countries have actively pursued the deployment of floating PV, with more than 35 installing an estimated 350 operational floating PV systems, equal to a total 2.6 GW of installed capacity. 

DNV acted as the Lender’s Technical Advisor, during the development phase, for Indonesia’s first-ever floating solar photovoltaic (PV) project at Cirata Reservoir in West Java. The project owner, PT. Pembangkitan Jawa Bali Masdar Solar Energi (PMSE), is a joint venture between the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC – Masdar (MASDAR) and Indonesian state-owned electricity company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) subsidiary PJBI.  

PMSE achieved financial close for the project on August 3, 2021, after the satisfactory completion of the lender’s due diligence review. The senior debt of the floating solar project is being provided by Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Societe Generale, and Standard Chartered Bank.

Once operational, the 145 MWac Cirata floating PV plant will be one of the largest of its kind in South East Asia. The region is already home to a number of large-scale floating PV systems including Vietnam’s 70 MW FPV system in Quang Thanh and Singapore’s 60 MW facility at Tengeh reservoir.

The Cirata floating PV project will have a plant capacity of 145 MWac. All power generated by the plant will be supplied and sold to PLN under a power purchase agreement (PPA).  

DNV supported the first phase of the Cirata floating PV project, which began in April 2020 and involved pre-construction due diligence. DNV’s role included undertaking site studies, estimating solar resource data and energy yield and reviewing the financial model’s technical assumptions.  

For Indonesia, which has historically relied on coal, gas, geothermal and hydropower to produce electricity, the Cirata floating solar power plant is expected to pioneer significant growth in solar PV by demonstrating the technical and commercial feasibility of solar PV systems in the country.