Utrecht-based PV-Projecten installed 2 MW of LONGi rooftop solar modules on three Etten Leur facilities belonging to Peeters Group, the agricultural machinery manufacturer. The installations enable the buildings to produce enough electricity to make them largely self-sufficient.
Stability, standardization, and service are key factors for rooftop modules
PV-Projecten, an EPC provider for turnkey commercial rooftop solar, selected LONGi to supply the more than 3.500 solar modules primarily due to their reliability. “The LONGi modules are more stable than those we’ve worked with from a major competitor,” Thom Stelwagen, PV-Projecten owner and manager, explained. “And our experience of their service has been very positive. On a technical level, the LONGi modules’ standard connectors make them easy to work with as well.”
Out of the 30 largest rooftop projects currently online in the Netherlands, Solarplaza found that almost 40 MW (11.8% of the total) used LONGi modules.
Incentives for manufacturers point to rooftop energy generation
Already the largest Dutch solar market segment, commercial rooftop photovoltaics has continued to develop in the Netherlands in 2022. Commercial distributed generation projects accounted for nearly 40% of the market in 2021, with 1.4 GW installed. The project for Peeters Group exemplifies the 2022 trend of continued growth.
While electricity prices in the Netherlands have fallen back to where they were at the end of last year – 155.5 euros per megawatt-hour as of October, manufacturers still face cost increases due to ongoing supply chain disruptions and bottlenecks. This makes energy independence a key step on the path toward greater cost-efficiency. In addition to manufacturers, PV-Projecten has worked extensively in the giant Dutch agricultural sector, which faces similar budgeting challenges with the rising price of fertilizer and equipment, along with other incentives to add solar power to their energy mix.
At 825 Watts per capita, the Netherlands has the highest solar capacity per capita in Europe and second highest in the world. The Dutch solar energy market expected to surpass 4 GW in 2025.
