Plant Performance

Digitalisation offers PV plant operators the opportunity to shift from preventive to predictive maintenance practices. Eduardo Sarquis reports on research aimed at shedding further light on the system performance benefits of moving to a predictive O&M strategy

PVTech Power reporter George Heynes got in touch with Solargis, a Slovakia-based weather data and software provider for solar power investors and operators, for a deep dive into maximising solar technologies in hot locations.

Tristan Erion-Lorico, VP of Sales and Marketing at PV Evolution Labs (PVEL), on the Inflation Reduction Act and its implications for the selection of materials going into producing solar modules.

Jason Kaminsky, CEO, kWh Analytics, on how renewable asset owners and their insurers are adapting the way they assess risk from natural catastrophes and extreme weather events.

Stuti Gupta, Solar Lead at Prescinto, an AI-powered asset performance management platform for solar, wind and energy storage assets, and Prescinto Performance Excellence Head Abhishek Puttanna on the role of artificial intelligence in monitoring and optimising photovoltaic assets.

While bifacial modules promise advantages in power production, they can create complex performance monitoring challenges. That will need to be resolved if project production uncertainties are expected to remain at levels and expectations currently set with the deployment of mono-facial modules, write Ajay Singh and Derek Jones of Campbell Scientific Inc.

Amid an increasingly unpredictable environment and a rise in extreme weather events, the solar industry must properly use its available data to protect assets and reduce risks, writes Gareth Brown, CEO of digital asset performance technology provider Clir Renewables.

Presenting findings on the exposure of PV panels to the harsh environment of the Arabian Desert, a team from the Qatar Environment & Energy Research Institute details the multiple mitigation approaches to solar soiling.

Rarely does the planning and design phase of solar farms consider the subsequent operational management and its costs. Jörn Carstensen, managing partner at greentech, explores how unforeseen effects from development, procurement and construction can have a significant impact on the economic viability of PV plants.

Using an in-house tool and PVsyst simulation software, a team from Chint New Energy Technology Co. analyse the LCOE of utility-scale solar systems in various countries based on three technologies: PERC, TOPCon and HJT.