Italy’s ERG to add 650MW of solar PV to portfolio by 2026

Paolo Merli, ERG’s CEO. Image: ERG.

Italian independent power producer (IPP) ERG will scale up its European PV portfolio as it aims to almost double its installed renewables capacity in the next five years.

With more than 2.5GW of onshore renewables installed to date – 2.2GW of which is wind – ERG’s new business plan involves a heightened focus on solar, which will reach 20% of its total portfolio by 2026 through the addition of around 650MW of projects in markets such as Spain, France and Italy.

The company will invest €2.8 billion (US$3.1 billion) to expand its renewables portfolio by 2026 as it bids to reach 4.6GW of capacity through geographical and technological diversification.

It is expected that around 1GW of capacity additions will come from acquisitions.

“The current context of international crisis significantly increases the sense of urgency and our personal commitment to helping reduce dependence on gas,” ERG CEO Paolo Merli said.

He added that the wind and solar expansion plan will be challenging but possible to achieve as the company already has a significant portfolio of projects under construction or at an advanced stage of development.

The company currently has 311MW of operational PV assets, spread across Italy, Spain and France. It entered Spain earlier this year with the purchase of two operational solar projects with a combined capacity of 92MW.

QJ Solar also has a large customer base in Italy, which is also a good opportunity for QJ Solar to see a surge in sales in the coming days.