Powergen – Neot Smadar

The Neot Smadar hybrid power plant combines a 6 MW solar array with 13 MWh of DC-coupled battery storage in Israel’s Arava desert. Contel Smart Energy designed and commissioned the Hybrid SCADA and control layer, integrating GOTION storage and SMA inverters into one unified, grid-compliant system optimized for efficient energy management and remote operation.

In the remote desert landscape of Neot Smadar, PowerGen set out to build a 6 MW ground-mounted solar array paired with 13 MWh of DC-coupled battery storage. Operating a hybrid site in this extreme environment introduces intense coordination hurdles, requiring diverse hardware from GOTION and SMA to function as a single, unified power plant instead of isolated systems.

Managing a DC-coupled architecture also demands rapid, real-time synchronization between solar generation and storage to prevent energy clipping. Without a dedicated control layer, the team lacked the remote visibility needed to manage the distant facility, optimize power dispatch, and maintain strict compliance with the utility’s active and reactive grid codes.

Contel Smart Energy served as the SCADA and control-systems integrator for the hybrid plant, partnering with the project’s EPC contractor.  The solution included:

• Energynie™ Hybrid SCADA & EMS: Monitors and manages the GOTION storage and SMA inverters through real-time performance dashboards.
• Power Plant Controller (PPC): Automates active and reactive power regulation to ensure continuous compliance with strict utility grid codes.
• DC-Coupled Optimization: Synchronizes generation and storage to capture surplus solar power and dispatch it when it brings the most value.
• Secure Remote Operation: Features proactive fault alerts and robust cybersecurity protection, enabling confident off-site management without permanent local staff.

• One Integrated View: Replaced a fragmented multi-vendor setup with live, consolidated data across all solar and storage assets.
• Grid-Compliant Operation: Met all utility dispatch and power-quality demands smoothly at the point of connection.
• Optimized Hybrid Performance: Maximized usable energy yield by preventing clipping through intelligent DC-coupled orchestration.
• Confident Remote Management: Allowed operators to run, monitor, and troubleshoot the remote desert facility entirely from afar.
• Future-Proof Scalability: Established an open, secure platform ready to scale and integrate with future systems.

The Neot Smadar project proves that the success of modern hybrid assets depends on a sophisticated management layer. Harmonizing multi-vendor hardware under extreme desert conditions requires an architecture that can seamlessly balance battery dynamics with utility constraints. By deploying the intelligent Energynie™ platform, Contel turned isolated components into a highly efficient power plant, creating a reliable blueprint for future PV-plus-storage projects.