AFRY delivers services for the construction of solar parks in the UK
Reduce carbon dioxide emissions from electricity production and achieve challenging net-zero emission targets
A multinational energy company operating worldwide and a global leader in renewable energy, began the construction phase of its first large-scale solar power investment in the UK in March 2024. These projects will be a significant milestone in reducing carbon dioxide emissions from electricity production in the UK and helping the country achieve its challenging net-zero emission goals.
AFRY´s offering
AFRY has extensive service experience in ensuring contractual deliveries of renewable energy plants. When the company was procuring detailed design and construction of seven solar parks, they turned to AFRY, based on the good references they had received from previous projects. The total capacity of the solar parks is estimated to be 300 MW of solar power, along with complementary battery energy storage systems (BESS).
AFRY has supported the energy company in the project in areas such as:
- project management,
- technical review,,
- occupational health and safety, construction and installation follow-up, and
- communication with other utility owners and municipalities to obtain the necessary permits for the work.
In the project, AFRY has collaborated across borders to deliver the best service and price to the customer. The project team consisted of individuals with various expertise from the UK, Ireland, India, Sweden, and the Netherlands. This diversity of knowledge and expertise across AFRY exemplifies the value AFRY can deliver, ensuring a high-quality outcome for the client.
- Malin Johansson, Senior Project Manager, took on the Grid Connection Project Manager role.
- Amin Ansari, Senior Project Planner has temporarily, at a critical stage, supported the project by providing expertise in scheduling complex project portfolios.”
From procurement to execution
As a project manager, Malin's assignment has been to ensure that AFRY delivers its internal project following the agreement with the customer and the set budget, and that the large construction projects, the external projects, are carried out following the contracts between the customer and contractors. The construction projects include grid connections for the solar parks, mainly in the form of 33/132 kV transformer stations and, in some cases, kilometres of cable laying to these stations. All solar parks will be connected to the 132 kV overhead lines. Malin has also ensured follow-up and communication with other utility owners and municipalities to obtain the necessary permits for the work.
Thanks to Malin's previous experience and expertise from similar projects in Sweden, her leadership skills, and a structured working method according to PMI’s (Project Management Institute) framework, which promotes best practices and standardization in project management, Malin was able to swiftly contribute value to both the project and the client.
I quickly ensured that internal roles were clarified through a responsibility matrix (RACI) and that we and the customer had aligned expectations regarding the need to ensure progress on the grid connections. Initially, it was mainly about setting up frequent meetings with intended contractors and ensuring orders of time-critical materials
Malin Johansson, senior project leader & Grid Connection Project Manager.
Since the project portfolio involves seven projects, Malin’s role has partly been seeing synergies between projects and identifying risks and mitigating them early. For example:
Since the regulations for private cables in public roads in the UK were unclear, AFRY, together with the customer, through clear and proactive communication with managers at the municipalities, ensured that the municipalities understood the meaning and benefits of the projects and also what requirements the municipalities have regarding execution and maintenance in public roads – and subsequently obtained approved applications for cable installations
The Final Goal is close – Solar Power to the Grid in 2024 and 2025
This solar power portfolio is a significant milestone for the client as the company expands in solar and battery power, in one of its most strategically important markets. The first solar park is planned to be commissioned in 2024, with the remaining parks in 2025.
Project Facts
Customer: Global energy company
Services delivered by AFRY: Project management, technical review, occupational health and safety follow-up, construction and installation follow-up, communication with utility owners and municipalities for necessary permits.
Project Location: UK
Planned installed capacity: 300 MW solar power, 45 MW BESS
