The power plant at Chernobyl has been inactive since 2000. After the meltdown in 1986, other nuclear reactors started operating, but for 18 years, Chernobyl has been nothing more than a wasted abandoned land. Recently, a completed project has changed the picture, and the 3800 installed solar panels can supply Ukraine with power once again. Two years ago, many companies proposed to establish a solar farm in Chernobyl. Theoretically, it was possible since the land has not been used for anything else, most infrastructure to carry electricity was still in place, and all a company needs to do is to install solar panels and attach it to the power grid to use its full energy.
Ukrainian government also offered many incentives like low land costs and substantial electricity prices to make the solar farm investment easier for the two European power companies, Rodina and Enerparc AG. These companies jointly formed Solar Chernobyl that is dedicated to run the solar farm in Ukraine. The solar panels were installed only a few feet from the reactor which melted down in the 1986 disaster. The farm cost around $1.2 million and supplies 1 megawatt of power to the country that is enough electricity for 2000 homes. They plan to produce approximately 100 megawatts at the site.
The solar plant provides the much-needed electricity to Ukraine. Before annexation by Russia, Ukraine had 170 megawatts of solar power installed in Crimea. Since then the country is forced to buy natural gas from Russia to compensate. The solar plant in Chernobyl will help to make the country a little bit more energy-independent.
