Floating solar

Developed by Chinese specialist Mibet, the floating PV structure can reportedly endure wind and snow loads of up to 42m/s and 1KN/㎡, respectively, in all water environments. It was recently deployed in Poland, at a location where temperatures may reach as low as 40 degrees Celsius.

Floating PV is a growing niche in the solar sector, but its offshore segment has proven more difficult to activate, largely because of the difficulty of open-water energy generation. Nevertheless, one company in Singapore, G8 Subsea, aims to leave the safety of harbors and reservoirs.

A Dutch consortium is testing a 20 kW pilot floating PV installation for offshore applications with CIGS solar modules developed by Swedish manufacturer Midsummer. The panels consist of 144 solar cells and measure 4 m X 1 m, with up to 485 W of capacity.

Through the procurement exercise, the Portuguese authorities want to select floating PV projects between 8 to 10 MW in size. Six water reservoirs have already been identified for their deployment.

The 41 MW facility was built by Korean developer Scotra with solar modules provided by South Korea-based manufacturer Hanwha Q-Cells. It was deployed on a water reservoir at the Hapcheon dam, in the South Gyeongsang province.

Developed by German company Sinn Power, the floating platform currently hosts solar modules totaling 80 kW and may also embed small wind turbines and wave energy converters.

Developed by scientists in Malta, the tool is said to predict yield gains or losses that waves can determine in offshore PV installations. The research group identified three movements an offshore array can be subject to, and for each of them provided specific measurements.

German renewable energy company Enovos and Luxembourg-based steelmaker ArcelorMittal have announced the inauguration of Luxembourg’s first floating PV plant. The facility was deployed with 25,000 solar modules on a former cooling pond owned by the steel manufacturer’s unit ArcelorMittal Differdange, which operates an electric steel plant in the homonymous municipality in Luxembourg. The project was […]

EDF is planning to build a 240 MW floating PV project at Laos’ largest hydropower dam. French engineering company Innosea has joined the ambitious project as a provider of support for wave and anchoring studies.

The pilot system was built with the Hydrelio floating platforms developed by French specialist Ciel&Terre. The project performance will be evaluated during a full seasonal weather cycle.