Edison Next signed a 20-year onsite power purchase agreement contract with Berco on May 5 to design, construct, manage and maintain a ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) plant for Berco’s Copparo site in the Province of Ferrara, Italy.

The plant will have a capacity of about 7.1 megawatt-peak (MWp) and will cover a total area of 96,000 sq m. It will consist of 70 inverters and 11,600 PV modules.

The plant will generate approximately 11,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) per year, covering 9% of the plant’s electricity needs through renewables. The share of self-consumption of renewable electricity self-produced by Edison Next and destined for the Copparo site will be just over 80%, with the remainder being stored or fed into the grid.

"Photovoltaics is a mature, consolidated and reliable technology that ensures benefits in terms of energy and emission reductions, and increases grid independence, limiting exposure to price volatility," said Marco Steardo, director of industry at Edison Next. “Today, it is the key technology from which to start on the path to decarbonization."

According to Patrick Buchmann, CEO of the ThyssenKrupp forged technologies business unit that Berco is part of, the cooperation with Edison Next will significantly contribute to the steps they have taken at the Copparo plant to achieve ThyssenKrupp's 2030 emission reduction targets.

Edison Next is an Edison Group company focused on decarbonization and the energy transition, and Berco is a ThyssenKrupp Group company specializing in the manufacture of undercarriage components and systems for tracked earthmoving machinery and equipment.