SunEdison, a subsidiary of MEMC Electronic Materials, will build a  solar power plant in Rovigo, Italy.  The photovoltaic solar power plant will produce 72 megawatts in the Veneto region of Northeastern Italy and when completed is expected to be the largest in Europe.

Power generation is expected to begin in 2010 with the project, called the Rovigo Project, completed by the end of the year.   According to the MEMC website, “ In first full year of operation, the system will generate sufficient energy to power  17,150 homes and avoid 41,000 tons of Co2-the equivalent of removing 8,000 cars from the road.

“SunEdison is focused on enabling the growth of global solar markets through strong capabilities in project finance, engineering, low – cost procurement and operations and maintenance services,’ commented Carlos Domenech, President of SunEdison.

“Veneto is taking decisive action to advance the use of clean, renewable energy sources,” said Renzo Marangon, government official of the Veneto region.  “At the same time, this project is expected to create over 350 local construction jobs and build expertise in advanced energy technologies.  We expect Rovigo to serve as a European model for large-scale, alternative-energy projects.”