ASTORIOS Holding Inc. is delivering the full engineering, procurement and construction scope for First Light, a 24 MWp solar power plant being developed for JSC Rustavi Azot, part of Indorama Corporation in Rustavi.
Designed specifically for industrial self-consumption, the project will supply electricity directly to Rustavi Azot’s production facility rather than export solar power to the national grid.
ASTORIOS confirmed to renewables.GE that the project’s previously announced technical figures remain unchanged. First Light will have an installed capacity of approximately 24 MWp, cover around 29 hectares and include 34,424 photovoltaic modules. Its expected annual electricity generation is more than 38 GWh.
Solar generation for direct industrial consumption
First Light is being developed around the continuous electricity requirements of Rustavi Azot, one of the Caucasus region’s major producers of fertilizers and industrial chemical products.
The plant will be connected to the electricity grid but will operate with a zero-export control system. Electricity generated by the solar installation will be consumed directly by the factory, while the control system is designed to prevent surplus power from flowing back into the national grid.
This arrangement differs from a conventional grid-connected solar power plant developed primarily to sell electricity. Instead, the project is intended to reduce the amount of electricity the industrial facility needs to obtain from external sources and provide greater predictability over part of its long-term energy supply.
The factory’s high and relatively consistent electricity demand is particularly suited to this model, allowing a substantial share of the solar generation to be absorbed directly by its production processes.
Full EPC delivery by ASTORIOS
ASTORIOS is responsible for the project under a full EPC scope, covering engineering, equipment procurement and construction.
The company’s role includes the integration of the photovoltaic system, electrical infrastructure, monitoring technology and zero-export controls required to coordinate solar generation with the operating demand of the industrial facility.
“First Light embodies everything ASTORIOS stands for: innovation, engineering discipline, and impact,” Lela Kurtanidze, Chief Executive Officer of ASTORIOS Holding Inc., said when the project was announced.
The project also demonstrates how large-scale solar installations can be developed behind the meter for energy-intensive businesses. Rather than relying on electricity sales to the market, the commercial value of the system is based principally on replacing part of the electricity that Rustavi Azot would otherwise purchase.
Prepared for possible battery integration
Battery storage is not part of the project’s currently announced configuration. However, ASTORIOS confirmed that the system has been optimized to allow storage to be integrated in the future if required by the customer.
A future battery energy storage system could support functions such as peak-load management, greater use of solar electricity outside the main generation hours and additional flexibility in managing the factory’s electricity demand.
The storage-ready design allows this option to be considered later without making battery deployment a prerequisite for the initial solar project.
ASTORIOS and Rustavi Azot have described First Light as the first and largest industrial-scale solar installation developed exclusively for self-consumption in the South Caucasus. Once operational, it is expected to provide a significant new example of how on-site renewable generation can be incorporated into energy-intensive industrial activity in Georgia.
Source note: Information and technical data provided by ASTORIOS Holding Inc.; additional background from previously published project announcements by BM.ge and Georgia Today.