The project that upon completion will become part of Europe’s largest solar energy site has undergone a major project company reorganization, with Solanda GmbH selling 74% of its shares.

The reorganization was announced before the weekend, as the proponents also gave updates on the status of the 50-megawatt (MW) Andasol 3 parabolic trough project in the south of Spain.

Andasol 3 was previously being developed by its project company Marquesado Solar S.L., a joint venture between solar thermal company Solar Millennium and MAN Ferrostaal, which had 100% shares in the company through holding company Solanda GmbH. MAN Ferrostaal is in charge of constructing the power plant.

The shares of Solanda GmbH has been acquired by German utility Stadtwerke Munchen, which acquired 48.9%, while 25.1% was acquired by a joint holding company of RWE Innogy and RheinEnergie, another German utility.

Solanda GmbH will retain 26% of the project company ownership.

Under the new arrangement, Solar Millennium, which previously had 38.5% ownership in the project, will now only have 10.01%, while MAN Ferrostaal, which previously had 61.5%, will get 15.99%.

According to RWE AG, construction of Andasol 3 in the province of Granada is already in the advanced stage, with assembly of the collectors to begin shortly. Andasol 3, like its predecessors, will be made up of 210,000 parabolic mirrors that will capture sunlight. This will heat a special fluid whose steam will run a turbine. The system also includes thermal storage, allowing for planned electricity use even after sunset.

Andasol 3 is expected for operation in 2011. The Andasol solar thermal power station, upon completion, will generate 150 MW of solar power and will cover a total of 1.5 million square meters, making it Europe’s largest solar effort.

“We have an ambitious objective: Munich will be the first city in Germany where all private households can be supplied with electricity generated from renewable sources in SWM’s own power plants,” Stadtwerke Munchen chairman Kurt Muhlhauser said.