EN 
PT_BR 
O government of Rio Grande do Norte signed, this week, a memorandum of understanding with the Rio Grande do Norte company IER (Internacional Energias Renováveis) to develop a project that will combine offshore wind energy with solar and green hydrogen.
According to governor Fátima Bezerra, the objective of the program is to boost these energy sources in the state, which could even become the first in Brazil to have offshore wind production.
According to Gibran Dantas, executive director of IER, the Ventos Potiguar Offshore Wind Complex, which is in an advanced stage of licensing with Ibama (Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources) and other regulatory agencies, foresees the installation of 207 wind turbines with a total capacity of 2.7 GW.
For the construction of the project, located between the municipalities of Pedra Grande and São Bento do Norte, R$ 18 billion will be invested, generating around 5 thousand jobs.
Solar plant and green hydrogen
Regarding the photovoltaic power plant that will be installed, Dantas stated that it will have 1 GW of power and will be built on land. “We are still in the projects and studies part. The entire complex is expected to last around ten years”, he pointed out.
Currently, according to data from ANEEL (National Electric Energy Agency), Rio Grande do Norte is in 14th place in the state ranking of photovoltaic DG (distributed generation) with around 145 MW of installed capacity.
Regarding the green hydrogen plant, he highlighted that it will consume part of the electricity generated in the offshore wind and solar plant to be, for the most part, exported and meet global demand, mainly the European market, “since, geographically , we are the closest point to Europe”, said Dantas. “The remainder will be offered to attract contributions to the local industry, within a project with incentives from the state government”, concluded the executive.
More about the complex
The governor of Rio Grande do Norte also reported that, since the beginning of the government, energy planning was defined. “This has shown highly positive results over the years. Recently, we were the state that received the most new contributions in the auction for renewable energy generation. Now, we are taking firm steps to consolidate Brazil’s first offshore energy production park”, he highlighted.
read more
Largest wind and solar complex in the world will be built in Rio Grande do Norte
“RN is at the forefront of the electricity generation process in the country. This will certainly help to activate several production chains and generate work, employment and income”, added Fátima.
Jaime Calado, secretary of Sedec (Secretariat of State for Economic Development), also commented on the complex and emphasized that the project represents almost half of the current 5.7 GW that are currently generated in renewable sources. “The energy planning carried out at the beginning of the current administration has been consolidating. The state also hires studies to make projects viable, attracting projects and investments”, highlighted Hugo Fonseca, energy development coordinator at Sedec.
