Fernando de Noronha

The Noronha I and Noronha II solar photovoltaic plants implementation was one of the first sustainable initiatives of Neoenergia in the archipelago.

The first solar plates began to be installed on the island in 2014. Thus, in July 2017, Noronha I was inaugurated, with 1,644 photovoltaic solar panels. Located in the Aeronautics Command and with an extension of approximately 5,000 m², the facility reaches an installed power of 400 kW and generates approximately 600 MWh/year.

In 2018, it was the turn of Noronha II inauguration. With 1,836 polycrystalline silicon modules, the plant was installed on a concrete area of 8,000 m², built in 1958 to collect rainwater. With an installed power of 550 kW, Noronha II generates approximately 800 MW/year.

Currently, the Noronha I and II solar photovoltaic plants are responsible for 10% of the island's electricity demand, thus avoiding the consumption of 375,000 liters of diesel oil per year​.

The Espaço Aulas de Energia is a virtual reality environment, created in Fernando de Noronha to explain to tourists and residents of the island the functioning and importance of solar power plants for the region. The project promotes immersive experiences through a 360º tour of the Noronha I and Noronha II plants, using virtual reality glasses.

The visits to the space are accompanied by a trained team and make possible the practical experience of the energy generation and its safe and efficient use. In the environment, visitors find technologies, experiments, mockups, panels and videos that add value to learning.​

In 2016, during the period of installation of the Noronha I and Noronha II solar power plants, the Smart Energy Grids system was implemented on the island.

The R&D project brings together technologies in measurement, telecommunication, information technology and automation areas. Through the installation of 816 bi-directional energy meters, the buildings and the island's distribution grid have equipment that collects a huge amount of data for further study, analysis and evaluation.

Smart Grids allow customers to have greater control over energy consumption, being able to identify the amount used at each moment of the day. In addition, the system can also be remotely accessed by Neoenergia, to identify and solve any type of incident that occurs in the archipelago's operational processes.

In line with the sustainable character of the company, the project encourages the use of distributed microgeneration, contributing to the diversification of the energy matrix and consequently to fossil fuel emissions reductions Nine solar energy capture systems were implemented in Fernando de Noronha in residential and commercial units, government agencies and non-governmental organizations, one of them with batteries for energy storage. From this pilot Celpe encourages Noronha consumers to generate their own energy and to make the most efficient consumption, contributing to sustainability with the use of renewable energies.​

​To stimulate the use of electric vehicles and to reduce the emission of pollutant gases, Celpe acquired an electric car that is supplied in an eco-station with photovoltaic plates. With a single vehicle, it will already be possible to avoid the emission of 1.5 tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.​

Currently, Celpe is coordinating an energy storage R&D project for implementation in Fernando de Noronha. The storage system has unprecedented use in Brazil and consists of two battery modules that will be interconnected to the Noronha I and Noronha II solar power plants and the Tubarão thermal power plant.

Once implemented, the system will allow the surplus energy generated and not consumed to be stored to supply up to 25% of the island's energy demand. ​