Lighthouse Commissions 82 MW Faro de San Marcos Solar Plant in Ecuador
The $50 million facility features over 105,000 bifacial panels and becomes Ecuador's largest operational PV plant.
Lighthouse, a subsidiary of Difare Group, inaugurated the 82 MW Faro de San Marcos solar plant on November 5 in Baños de San Vicente, Santa Elena province, Ecuador, according to pv-magazine.com pv-magazine.com
pv-magazine.compv-magazine.comOpen source ↗. The facility has entered commercial operation and represents an investment of $50 million for its first phase. The developer stated that the site is currently Ecuador’s largest operational and privately owned photovoltaic installation.
Technical Architecture and Yield
The solar power station covers 49.3 hectares and incorporates more than 105,000 bifacial solar modules. Technical project details specify the use of fixed-tilt, dual-slope mounting structures, string inverters, and dedicated transformer stations. The final installed capacity of 82 MW exceeded the 75 MW baseline originally planned at the project's announcement in December 2025. Construction was completed in eight months, employing an average workforce of 400 personnel.
Lighthouse expects the facility to generate approximately 106 GWh of electricity annually, which corresponds to the estimated demand of 15,000 households. Generated energy flows directly into the distribution network run by state-owned utility Corporación Nacional de Electricidad (CNEL EP). Commercial off-takers sourcing electricity through the grid include retail chain Tía, Corporación El Rosado, and Difare.
Grid Additions and Expansion
Commercial commissioning occurred ahead of schedule, which initially targeted the first quarter of 2027 pv-magazine.com
pv-magazine.compv-magazine.comOpen source ↗. During the opening event, Difare Group Executive Chairman Carlos Cueva Mejía announced development plans for an adjacent solar facility requiring an estimated $80 million investment.
The plant follows the September startup of the 65 MW Río de Oro Energy facility, built by GPS Group in the same province for over $50 million to produce 90 GWh annually. These private deployments follow regulatory approvals from August 2025, when Ecuador authorized 643 MW of private renewables, including 179.1 MW for distributed generation and 464.6 MW for corporate self-generation. Data from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) recorded 131.35 MW of cumulative installed solar capacity in Ecuador at the end of 2025.
