Plug-and-play mobile PV system to power solar parks’ construction sites

From pv magazine Latam

Spanish renewable energy company Acciona has installed, in Chile, its first mobile photovoltaic generation unit, with the aim of replacing diesel as an energy source in the construction of the new detention center La Laguna Education and Work Center, in the commune of Talca, in the Maule region.

During its entire construction period, which began at the end of 2017, the La Laguna project has not had a connection to the electricity grid, and a very high number of diesel generators had to be used to meet its energy needs, explained Acciona in a press release.

The mobile PV system is made up of 70 photovoltaic panels with a power output of 370 W each, which together make up a foldable solar structure with an installed capacity for the generation of clean energy of 25.9 kWp.

With this pilot project, Acciona wants to assess the technical, economic and environmental viability of this portable photovoltaic generator and to evaluate its use in the company’s construction projects around the world, explained Miguel Ángel París Torres, head of the area of the office of projects, sustainable and industrial building of the R&D center of the Acciona construction business. “The main indicator of the success of this pilot project, from the point of view of sustainability, will be the fuel savings achieved,” he stated.

The mobile PV unit that has been installed in the La Laguna project is one of the solutions that Acciona intends to implement on a large scale in the field of portable plug-and-play generator sets based on renewable energy sources, mainly photovoltaic, as well as in H₂ fuel cells.

“At Acciona, we plan to continue with the validation tests of some of these emerging technologies throughout this year, in various works of different types and specific energy needs, which will be one of the first experiences of this type in the sector of construction worldwide,” Torres further explained.