Telecommunication service provider A1 Bulgaria has signed a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with Renalfa, a Bulgarian clean energy investment organization, for solar energy.
Under the deal, for the next ten years Renalf will supply A1 Bulgaria with 20GWh of sustainable energy per year. The energy will be generated by a 33 MW solar plant located in South Bulgaria.
“As part of the A1 Telekom Austria Group, we are aware of our environmental responsibilities and have established an ambitious environmental goal of lowering CO2 emissions to zero by 2030. We will achieve this by reducing our own carbon footprint and gradually shifting to renewable energy,” stated Alexander Dimitrov, chairman of the management board and CEO of A1 Bulgaria.
He went on to say, “The solar energy PPA signed by A1 Bulgaria represents a big step forward in the country's clean energy transition. It is our responsibility as a major communications operator to use our knowledge to drive a green and digital revolution.”
This is the first “sleeved” PPA on the Bulgarian market, according to Renalfa. Under a sleeved PPA, an intermediary utility company manages the transfer of money and energy to and from a renewable energy project on the buyer's behalf. Renalfa's subsidiary Toki.bg will provide the sleeving service to A1.
“Corporate PPAs are the backbone of the clean energy transition, and we are happy to announce the first ‘sleeved’ PPA on the Bulgarian market,” stated Yuri Katanov, executive director of Renalfa.
According to the Renalfa group of companies, it had completed photovoltaic projects in Europe and the Middle East with a total peak capacity of 6 GW, while in Eastern Europe, it invests in and develops solar, wind, energy storage, and power-to-X (PtX) projects.
