tl;dr Floating solar has the potential to supply a terawatt of energy capacity or more, out of the 16 or so that the world needs. A terawatt here, a terawatt there, and pretty soon you're talking about real power.
Yes, solar PV parks floating on, well, what sort of water do you have? Lakes, rivers, reservoirs, water at the bottom of surface mines and quarries, the ocean? Talk to us. You can even try this at home, with a low-cost floating solar water fountain that you can buy on eBay, Wayfair, Amazon, Home Depot, Target, Walmart…for your swimming pool, fishpond, birdbath…
The Market
Why Is Floating Solar Emerging So Quickly, & Where Is It Going?
Solarplaza’s Top 200 floating solar plants shows that China, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea are leading the pack, however, with many projects under development in countries like India, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, the Netherlands, France, and the United States, deployment is accelerating globally.
The World Bank’s Where Sun Meets Water Report most conservative estimates show that covering 10% of all suitable inland water bodies would add-up to over 4 TW peak capacity.
Solarplaza is hosting a Global Floating Solar Conference in September in Amsterdam, addressing all of this with experts from all over the world.
We need somewhat more than 16 TW capacity in all. The Sun gives us many, many times that in light, wind, and rain, each.
What’s Not To Love About Floating Solar Farms? (#CleanTechnica Interview)
with Christian Rynning-Tønnesen, CEO of Norway’s Statkraft.
Floating solar panels can get a conversion efficiency boost, thanks to the cooling effect of the water upon which they rest.
That is, the water cools the panels, which can thereby convert more energy at closer to their optimum operating temperature. Also, you don't have ground preparation on water.
He pointed to the downward spiral in conventional solar costs as an indication that floating solar can become competitive — without subsidies — within a few years.
This is currently being argued, but we will soon have facts to go on, in the forms of technology and market trends. For now, the convenience of locating floating solar on available bodies of water sometimes overcomes higher cost.
Marketwatch: Floating Solar Panels Market Trends, Size, Global Industry Growth Analysis, Emerging Trends, Regional, Outlook, Forecast Report, Key Players, Vikram Solar, KYOCERA Document Solutions America
As per Global Market Insights, Inc., "Floating Solar Panel Industry size, which was estimated at 60 MW in 2015, is projected to surpass 2.5 GW by 2024." Low land availability for PV systems installations is anticipated to further stimulate the industry outlook over the coming timeframe. In this regards, the countries are focusing on maximum utilization of the waterbodies to address the rising energy needs.
Greentechmedia: Floating Solar Excels Where Land Is Scarce, and That’s a Lot of Places
That includes Japan, the Netherlands, Bangladesh, parts of China, and others.
With more than 1 gigawatt already installed globally, the market potential of floating PV runs deep. But first developers and customers must feel comfortable taking the plunge.
The World Bank estimated a worldwide potential of 400 gigawatts, conservatively.
In hot environments, the water cools down the equipment relative to a land-based system. Floating module temperatures can be 5 to 10 degrees Celsius lower than on a roof, and that differential boosts performance, Barnes said. Developers can choose pontoon styles to maximize this effect.
Most intriguing, from a grid operations perspective, is the combination of floating solar with hydroelectric dams. Since the dams already have transmission hookups and are themselves dispatchable, this arrangement could allow the solar to generate without curtailment and reach market with lower interconnection costs.
Floating solar offers unique bargains — U.S. utilities are missing out
Siting photovoltaics on water is proving reliable worldwide and the PVs could meet almost 10% of U.S. electricity needs at market-competitive costs, according to NREL.
"As of mid-2018, the cumulative installed capacity of floating solar was approaching 1.1 GW," the World Bank reported. That was the U.S. ground-mounted solar installed capacity in 2000.
A surprise in the report was that "every state has floating solar potential, though the water bodies are diverse and the solar resources are different," NREL's Macknick said. Idaho, Maine, New Mexico and Oklahoma have more floating solar potential than their in-state electricity consumption and could become solar-generated electricity exporters.
The promised land of floating PV now has guidelines for proper deployment
The Netherlands-based Foundation for Applied Water Research has published a Guide for the licensing of floating solar parks on water and developed a tool to measure the effect of PV modules on water quality and quantity and the ecosystem.
The guide is part of a feasibility study being carried out by the Zon op Water consortium, an initiative of Dutch water management agency the Rijkswaterstaat which STOWA participates in and that is controlled by the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment, and the Solar Energy Application Community (SEAC).
The Netherlands offers huge potential for floating PV as it has approximately 52,000 hectares of shallow inland water.
SERIS reaffirms TW-scale potential for floating PV as global installs pass 1.3 GW
More than 1.3 GWp of floating solar capacity has already been built throughout the world, according to a new report, with the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore reaffirming its belief that the global potential for floating PV is in the terawatt range.
Examples
Dutch government plans 100 MW floating PV project at dredging spoil depot
Statkraft plans its first floating solar plant in Albania
Norway’s state-owned hydropower and wind company intends to deploy a 2 MW floating installation at its 72 MW hydropower plant in Albania’s Elbasan district.
The project is the second floating solar proposal submitted to the Albanian authorities. The first, with a planned capacity of 12.9 MW, was presented by state-owned utility Korporata Elektroenergjetike Shqiptare in early December.
Albania has strong potential for floating solar as it depends almost entirely on hydropower and has an abundance of water surfaces as a result.
Bangladesh prepares plans for two floating solar plants
Backing from the Asian Development Bank will help a 50 MW project get off the ground – and onto the water – in Chittagong, and a developer has been lined up to install solar on a stretch of the Padma river.
Working on floating solar farms
Millions of solar panels clustered together to form an island could convert carbon dioxide in seawater into methanol, which can fuel airplanes and trucks, according to new research from Norway and Switzerland and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal, PNAS, as NBC News reported. The floating islands could drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions and dependence on fossil fuels.
Brazilian hydroelectric company Chesf finalizes floating PV project
The 1 MW array – to be expanded to 5 MW – is being tested before official commissioning. The plant is at the Sobradinho dam, a 175 MW hydroelectric facility on the São Francisco River, in the state of Bahia.
Chesf has previously deployed a floating array at the Balbina dam, a hydroelectric facility and power station on the Uatumã river in the Amazon rainforest.
Floating solar reaches new territories
In Cambodia, Singapore’s Cleantech is building a 10 MW solar plant including a 2.7 MW floating section, and in Lithuania, state-owned utility Lietuvos Energija is deploying a floating plant at the Kruonis pumped storage hydroelectric power plant.
Ciel & Terre [Heaven & Earth] completes 70 MW solar array in China
The project was awarded under a 1 GW tender intended to install renewable generation capacity in former mining areas where subsidence and flooding have left huge basins of standing water.
French floating PV specialist Ciel & Terre has completed work on a 70 MW floating solar installation for state-owned developer China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group.
The floating PV specialist…claims its Hydrelio technology prevents the accumulation of algae on bodies of water and minimizes evaporation.
Chile’s first floating PV project reaches completion
Mining giant Anglo American has installed an 84 kW floating array at a copper mine in Chile’s Valparaiso Region. The project was developed by Lenergie with the floating technology of Ciel&Terre.
South America has the potential to deploy 36 GW of floating solar, according to a recent report from the World Bank. The Where Sun Meets Water report also revealed that the global cumulative installed capacity of floating PV plants was 1.1 GW by the end of September 2018.
According to another recent study by Christian Breyer — professor of solar economy at Finland’s Lappeenranta University of Technology — a hydropower plant at a reservoir can function as a virtual charge during daytime, by accumulating water for power production when there is no sunlight.
84 kW. OK, baby steps.
Ciel et Terre Turns To PPA For California’s Largest Floating Solar System
French floating solar specialist Ciel et Terre has begun installation of 1.78 megawatt floatovoltaic technology system at what it calls the largest floating solar system in California. To finance this project, the company has utilized a 25-year power purchase agreement for the first time, providing a lifetime savings of $4 million for the Town of Windsor.
The company turned to a private investor to monetize the tax credit the facility will earn, since the town can not utilize the credit. Under the contract, while the investor and Ciel et Terre could disassemble and move the array at the end of the 25-year PPA, it is likely that a buyout agreement will keep the system in location. Ciel et Terre typically sells floating solar facilities to private sector clients, but expects to develop more PPAs with municipalities, counties and state entities.
The project is being installed on a wastewater pond operated by the Windsor Wastewater Reclamation Facility, and will power a variety of Town facilities, providing 90% of their water reclamation system needs. The Town also is in the process of installing EV charging stations that will be powered by the floating array.
EDP plans first MW-scale floating PV project in Portugal
The Portuguese utility is seeking permission to deploy a 4 MW floating solar plant at the Alqueva water reservoir in southern Portugal. The solar array will feature around 10,000 PERC half-cell solar modules.
Seychelles firms up 4 MW floating PV project
The installation will be Africa’s first privately financed, utility scale floating solar installation. A group of pre qualified bidders inspected the site and are expected to submit full technical and financial documentation by September.
“We, at the Clinton Climate Initiative, are thrilled to support this innovative project which represents a groundbreaking step forward for island nations and other regions with limited land available for solar development,” said Fiona Wilson, senior regional manager at the Clinton Climate Initiative division of the eponymous foundation. “Floating solar photovoltaic energy holds immense potential for islands, and our partners in Seychelles are demonstrating true leadership in addressing the global climate and energy crisis.”
The first large scale floating installation could open the floodgates for the technology in Africa. Floating solar’s potential, as calculated by the World Bank, is impressive and numerous companies are working to optimize the technology.
Collocation with hydropower dams is an approach likely to be popular as the necessary grid connection and power electronics are already present. Deploying floating PV on just 10% of the continent’s water surfaces would result in more than 1 TW of solar generation capacity.
Wait, another terawatt? I'm losing track. I mean, any number projected that far ahead is fictional, but…Never mind. I'll just wait for it.
Floating Wind Turbines
Yes, that, too. Another Friday.
Floating Offshore Wind Turbine Free-For-All Hits California Coast
No, I don't know when I can get to it. I have several topics lined up ahead of it, and many others waiting their turn.
For example, next Friday it will be electric buses.