China-headquartered PV technology manufacturing giant Trina Solar said the 39.4 MW Kaitaia Solar Farm on New Zealand’s North Island is the first project in the Asia-Pacific region to integrate both its modules and its smart tracking system.

Developed by Lodestone Energy, the Kaitaia Solar Farm includes 61,000 Trina Solar Vertex 550 W bifacial dual glass panels mounted on TrinaTracker Vanguard 2P tracking systems powered by a smart algorithm designed to optimise the tracking angle to ensure maximum energy generation.

Edison Zhou, Trina Solar’s head of operations in Australia and New Zealand, said the project underscores the company’s commitment to provide total solutions for solar developers.

Zhou said the company’s capacity to serve as a single supplier for solar projects means developers and installers benefit from having a single procurement source that streamlines processes, enables faster delivery, smoother negotiations, and unified after-sales service.

“This reduces costs and ensures efficiency, particularly in challenging site conditions,” he said, noting that the relationship with Lodestone “has been characterized by close collaboration from the technical design phase to commissioning … We are committed to delivering technological excellence, including modules, trackers, and energy storage systems.”

Lodestone Managing Director Gary Holden said the developer would continue to work with Trina Solar as it rolls out its project pipeline with Kaitaia the first of five utility-scale solar farms it intends to develop across the North Island

Holden said lessons learned in the construction of Kaitaia are now being applied in the planning and building of the future farms, with its second farm Edgecumbe expected to be commissioned early in 2024 and the third farm at Waiotahe, planned to be generating in late 2024.

“Our third solar farm at Waiotahe is currently under construction, utilising the latest Trina Solar panels and trackers again for optimal production,” he said. “Our collaboration with Trina Solar enables us to fulfill our goal of supplying renewable energy solutions to more consumers in New Zealand, meeting their sustainability goals while ensuring economic stability.”

Lodestone is also developing solar farms at Whitianga and Dargaville.