Neoenergía, a subsidiary of the Spanish electricity company Iberdrola, officially announced on Saturday the start of work on the largest solar power plant on Fernando de Noronha (an island in northeastern Brazil), which will allow until 2027 to decarbonize electricity generation in this paradisiacal archipelago, considered a natural heritage of humanity.
The project will contain 30,000 solar panels, with a generating capacity of 22 megawatts, integrated with advanced battery storage systems, which will make the main island of Fernando de Noronha the first in Latin America with a green energy array.
“Today we are building something new for humanity, in the sense that a more sustainable world is possible, with cleaner, more efficient and more competitive energy,” Iberdrola President Ignacio Galán said during the event.
With an area of 24.63 hectares, the Noronha Verde plant will require an investment of 350 million reais (about $65 million) and will serve about 3,100 residents of the island.
The capacity of the battery storage system is 49 megawatts per hour, equivalent to the consumption of 9,000 homes on the continent.
The first phase of the project will be completed in the first half of 2026 with the delivery of 16% of the plant, which is scheduled to operate at full capacity in 2027.
Galán believes that the initiative implemented, with the support of the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the State of Pernambuco, and launched on the eve of the start of the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP30, held in the Brazilian city of Belém, shows the Iberdrola Group’s commitment to Brazil. Specifically, the slogan of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) is “less promises, more action.”
The company plans to invest about 40 billion reais (about 7.5 billion dollars) in Brazil between 2025 and 2029.
According to Nenergía’s CEO, Eduardo Capelastegui, at the level of operational costs, the new system will be cheaper than the current one, so the new project will benefit the entire Brazilian electrical system, in addition to changing the quality of life on the island.
An environmental paradise seeking sustainable development
This ecological reserve of volcanic origin, with an area of 26 square kilometers, and consisting of 21 islands, rocks and islets, is located in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, more than 500 kilometers from the capital, Pernambuco, in the northeast of the country.
Discovered in 1503, Noronha was used by Brazil and the United States as a military base during World War II, and served as a prison at various stages before becoming one of the country’s main tourist destinations.
Although it is an environmental protection area characterized by its paradisiacal beaches and rich biodiversity, its main energy source is the Tubarao power station, which burns about 27,000 liters of diesel per day, and emits about 21,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually.
Therefore, when the new solar power plant is fully operational, Tubarao will only serve to ensure the island’s energy security and will only be activated in emergency situations.
“With 100% decarbonisation, any subsequent initiative, such as urban mobility, will rely on a 100% renewable matrix, which integrates with the island, which is a UNESCO reserve,” he added.
In order to promote sustainable development in the region and turn Noronha into an international reference, between 2020 and 2025, Nuenergia invested about 92.5 million riyals (about 17 million dollars).
Betting on the sun
“We have a comprehensive program being implemented so that the island becomes a global reference,” Capelastegui said, referring to various initiatives that include the “More for Noronha” program, which the company designed to promote sustainable development.
In this context, the company also announced on Saturday the delivery of the first floating solar power plant in the archipelago, capable of avoiding the emission of 717 tons of carbon dioxide annually.
The plant, which has been in operation since last September, was built at the Xaréu Dam with an investment of 10 million reais (about $2 million).
The archipelago currently has five power plants built by Neoenergía, which account for 5% of domestic energy demand (peak 1,682 kilowatts).
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