Utility-scale solar is scaling fast, but operating models haven't kept pace. As portfolios grow and margins tighten, operational efficiency has evolved from a maintenance task into a core revenue strategy. The primary bottleneck is no longer hardware, but the “operational friction” of inspecting vast assets.
In the 2026 landscape, the conversation has shifted from feasibility to speed. Traditional drone inspections often suffer from a “data lag” of up to two weeks. In an era of tighter Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), these delays represent an unacceptable hit to ROI because faults compound quietly. Many issues are invisible from the ground and don't present as “obvious failures” until production is lost. A shorted bypass diode, for instance, deactivates a full module sub-string, resulting in an immediate 33% drop in output for the affected panel and potential overheating in the remaining cells – a deficit that quietly erodes the capacity factor of an entire string.
To counter this, the industry is undergoing two parallel shifts: forming in-house inspection teams and adopting multi-drone technology.
The end of the CAPEX-heavy era
The initial wave of automation focused on “drone-in-a-box” (DIAB) solutions. While useful for persistent monitoring, the economics for large-scale portfolios are being re-evaluated. Stationary “box” solutions require significant upfront investment, often reaching $30,000 to $150,000 per unit when factoring in site prep and industrial connectivity. Because high-quality inspections are periodic or ad-hoc rather than daily, stationary hardware often sits idle, resulting in poor asset utilization.
In contrast, by leveraging multi-drone technology for simultaneous operations, a single operator can deploy a fleet covering 100+ MW daily. By increasing throughput by 70%, the “hive” model eliminates the need for site-specific, high-CAPEX infrastructure. It transforms inspection from a costly equipment purchase into a flexible operational workflow that can service a multi-gigawatt portfolio using a single mobile fleet.
Data at the speed of operations
The goal is to shorten the cycle from capture to prioritization. Modern autonomous workflows have reduced “data-to-insight” turnaround from weeks to just 24–48 hours. This allows O&M teams to move from detection to issuing a work order within the same business week.
Looking ahead at 2026, the focus remains on scaling capture without scaling headcount. The winners will be the organizations that move beyond static monitoring to embrace agile, multi-drone workflows. By leveraging platforms like vHive to build high-fidelity digital twins, operators can finally treat inspection cadence as a strategic lever for revenue stability.
This content is protected by copyright and may not be reused. If you want to cooperate with us and would like to reuse some of our content, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.
By submitting this form you agree to pv magazine using your data for the purposes of publishing your comment.
Your personal data will only be disclosed or otherwise transmitted to third parties for the purposes of spam filtering or if this is necessary for technical maintenance of the website. Any other transfer to third parties will not take place unless this is justified on the basis of applicable data protection regulations or if pv magazine is legally obliged to do so.
You may revoke this consent at any time with effect for the future, in which case your personal data will be deleted immediately. Otherwise, your data will be deleted if pv magazine has processed your request or the purpose of data storage is fulfilled.
Further information on data privacy can be found in our Data Protection Policy.