On the 1st of April 2022, Banja Floating Solar Plant’s first floater restarted commercial operations after an incident last summer. This project is part of an R&D investment by Statkraft, based on Ocean Sun’s innovative floating solar technology.

The floater is located on the Banja reservoir in Albania, in addition to Statkraft’s 72-megawatt hydropower plant and is now generating renewable energy to the Albanian national electricity grid. The first unit covers nearly 4,000 square meters and has an installed capacity of 500 kWp, with almost 1600 solar panels.

“We are very pleased with the construction of the Ocean Sun flagship floater at the Statkraft’s Banja reservoir. A similar system was damaged last year. The new reinforced design is based on updated meteorological predictions. I wish to thank all colleagues in Ocean Sun and the Statkraft teams both in Norway and Albania for the excellent cooperation and unwavering determination. I also extend my gratitude towards the contractor Doko. Lastly, I wish to thank DNV for the instrumental role in the verification of the design. Many lessons were learned in the aftermath of the incident and the new floater gives Ocean Sun another opportunity to demonstrate the high performance and operability of the Ocean Sun innovative membrane FPV technology. We also look forward to the second stage of the project during which three additional floaters are planned to be implemented,” says Børge Bjørneklett, CEO and founder of Ocean Sun.

“DNV has verified the mooring design and the structural design of the main floating structure for the solar plant at Banja Dam. Floating solar is expanding rapidly and DNV is taking a leading role in verification of novel technologies, such as the Ocean Sun solution”, says Marte Aaberg Midtsund, Head of Department – Project Engineering and Due Diligence, Renewables, Northern Europe.