Sonnedix Alange is an 8.4MW solar PV plant located in the province of Badajoz, western Spain. The plant was acquired by Sonnedix in January 2018, as part of Alten’s portfolio.
Our team member, Juan Pulido, has been part of this project since its construction phase, becoming part of our One Team as the site’s O&M Supervisor once the plant was acquired.
Juan has always been passionate about the countryside life and being surrounded by animals; every day, he takes Sinvergüenza (Rascal), his mastiff dog, to the plant with him to support him and the animals in the farm.
In 2016, a baby wild boar of approximately four or five months appeared at the farm, possibly escaping from hunting activity at the mountain range of Alange. There was no sight of the piglet’s mother, so Juan decided to take care of him at the farm. He called him Rayito, which came from the Spanish term “rayón” (stripe) used for wild boar piglets due to their distinctive striped coats.
Rayito adapted very easily to his new temporary life at the plant. Juan bottle-fed him and took him every day to the site to play in the mud and with other animals, like the sheep that go to the site to feed. As he grew bigger, Juan created a separate fenced space for him to ensure his tusks would not hurt any other animal in the plant.
Brief time after Rayito’s arrival to the plant, Juan got a call from a friend nearby: a fawn appeared stuck at their fence. There was no sign of the mother and, unable to keep the animal within his friend’s property, Juan decided to take her under his care. When he arrived at the property, his friend’s grandfather greets him and told him he would like to name the fawn Patricia, as he never had a daughter and that is the name, he would have chosen for her.
Patricia, like Rayito, was raised in the plant, bottle-fed by Juan himself. She adjusted well to being there with Juan’s dog and the sheep that go often to the plant.
After a few years under Juan’s care, it was time to return Patricia and Rayito to their natural habitat.
Juan was incredibly careful with their reinsertions into the wild, to make sure they would both be okay in the
ir new space. Rayito was released in the Cornalvo Natural Park, a large natural reserve near Mérida (western Spain). The park has different ecosystems and landscapes, and it is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna, of course including wild boars. Patricia was taken back to the property where she was found, to be released in the woods within the Serena area.
Juan did not see Rayito again, but Patricia has been seen near his friend’s property, which was a confirmation for Juan that she was doing well.
We are proud to see how our solar PV plants fully integrate in the local environment, even becoming a home or place of shelter for wild species.
Some of our plants across the globe count with several protected species at high risk of extinction, threatened, and near threatened, and stories like this represent our strong commitment to protecting and enhancing the local environment – part of our ESG standards. Moreover, we are proud to see team members going beyond acting as a true responsible neighbour and social citizen in the communities within which we operate.