286
A. Virtuani
countries, particularly where substantial solar resources are available (e.g. China,
Mexico, Brazil, Gulf countries.)
Similarly, for rooftop PV, small-scale systems on residential units are called residential PV (typically with a size of 1–20 kW), larger rooftop PV systems (up to
2 MW) built on commercial/industrial warehouses or buildings are often referred to
as commercial and industrial PV.
A recent flourishing market in developing countries is that of so-called pico or
micro PV systems. These systems consist, generally, of a single solar PV panel
with a power of about 10–300 Watts, connected to a battery and a charge controller.
So-called pico or micro solar home-systems generate enough power to recharge
mobile phones, illuminate households with LED lights, and can often also provide
power to other appliances, such as refrigerators. Similarly, the integration of PV into
infrastructures (e.g. motorway noise barriers, car parks, water treatment plants, etc.)
unlocks the potential for the diffusion of solar PV virtually everywhere.
In this Chapter, organized in short informative boxes, we present a few examples
of PV installations for the different categories.
11.2 Solar on Land
Ground-mounted PV installations are easy to realize and deploy and can be built
relatively quickly. Often in 6–12 months, compared to hydro and nuclear projects
that require over 4–5 years to be completed.
Examples of utility-scale plants of different dimensions are described in Boxes
11.1, 11.2 and 11.3. Additionally, a substantial decline in the cost of solar PV projects
(approximately a 90% reduction over ten years) has improved solar PV’s competitiveness, reducing the needs for subsidies and enabling solar to become competitive
with other power generation options (e.g. fossil fuels and wind). This is particularly
true for large utility-scale projects. For this kind of projects, the site selection is
extremely relevant and is based on the following criteria: (a) the local availability
of solar resources, (b) the proximity to the grid, and (c) the possibility to be easily
connected to the grid.
For utility-scale plants, the plant owner (often an Independent Power Producer)
sells power to the off-taker that can be a state-owned utility (or company) or the
wholesale electricity market. The business models behind the development of this
kind of projects are generally of two types:
(1) A model that has been fairly successful for large plants in several emerging
markets (and that is nowadays adopted in some European countries too); here the
terms (price and duration) of the Power Purchase Agreement is pre-determined
through a tender process in which the developer submits a competitive bid, and
competes against other bidders.
A. Virtuani
countries, particularly where substantial solar resources are available (e.g. China,
Mexico, Brazil, Gulf countries.)
Similarly, for rooftop PV, small-scale systems on residential units are called residential PV (typically with a size of 1–20 kW), larger rooftop PV systems (up to
2 MW) built on commercial/industrial warehouses or buildings are often referred to
as commercial and industrial PV.
A recent flourishing market in developing countries is that of so-called pico or
micro PV systems. These systems consist, generally, of a single solar PV panel
with a power of about 10–300 Watts, connected to a battery and a charge controller.
So-called pico or micro solar home-systems generate enough power to recharge
mobile phones, illuminate households with LED lights, and can often also provide
power to other appliances, such as refrigerators. Similarly, the integration of PV into
infrastructures (e.g. motorway noise barriers, car parks, water treatment plants, etc.)
unlocks the potential for the diffusion of solar PV virtually everywhere.
In this Chapter, organized in short informative boxes, we present a few examples
of PV installations for the different categories.
11.2 Solar on Land
Ground-mounted PV installations are easy to realize and deploy and can be built
relatively quickly. Often in 6–12 months, compared to hydro and nuclear projects
that require over 4–5 years to be completed.
Examples of utility-scale plants of different dimensions are described in Boxes
11.1, 11.2 and 11.3. Additionally, a substantial decline in the cost of solar PV projects
(approximately a 90% reduction over ten years) has improved solar PV’s competitiveness, reducing the needs for subsidies and enabling solar to become competitive
with other power generation options (e.g. fossil fuels and wind). This is particularly
true for large utility-scale projects. For this kind of projects, the site selection is
extremely relevant and is based on the following criteria: (a) the local availability
of solar resources, (b) the proximity to the grid, and (c) the possibility to be easily
connected to the grid.
For utility-scale plants, the plant owner (often an Independent Power Producer)
sells power to the off-taker that can be a state-owned utility (or company) or the
wholesale electricity market. The business models behind the development of this
kind of projects are generally of two types:
(1) A model that has been fairly successful for large plants in several emerging
markets (and that is nowadays adopted in some European countries too); here the
terms (price and duration) of the Power Purchase Agreement is pre-determined
through a tender process in which the developer submits a competitive bid, and
competes against other bidders.