PV Tech Power Papers

Project name: Jasper solar power project; Location: Near Kimberly; Northern Cape, Province, South Africa; Capacity: 96MWp; Annual Generation: 180,000MWh.

Evidence is emerging that data used in PV yield modelling, an essential element in optimising a plant’s design and profitability, is leading to erroneous results. Ben Willis reports on the solar industry’s data challenge and how it is responding.

As PV expands its global footprint, logistics – transporting goods from factory to project site – is becoming a complicated challenge for manufacturers. Sara Ver Bruggen reports on efforts by the industry to reduce costs arising from equipment damaged in transit.

Last year First Solar revealed that its 50MW Macho Springs project in New Mexico had become the first to receive a ‘Quality Tested’ certification from VDE and Fraunhofer ISE, as described on the previous pages. Ben Willis asks Azmat Siddiqi, First Solar’s senior vice president of quality and reliability, and John Sedgwick, president of VDE Americas Quality, what the accolade means.

Grid constraints, feed-in tariff fears and the spectre of a nuclear resurgence have all threatened to derail solar’s astonishing rise to prominence in Japan, but the country still looks on course to be 2014’s second largest PV market. Andy Colthorpe reports on the state of Japanese solar as it begins its five-year countdown to grid parity.

In 2014, a number of countries around the world began to develop into serious solar end markets. Ben Willis asks IHS analyst Josefin Berg to give her tips on the emerging markets to watch over the coming year.

At a conference in Thailand at the end of 2014, delegates heard of the region’s attempts to break free of costly diesel power. Lucy Woods reports on the progress solar energy is making in displacing the diesel generators.

Throughout 2014, there were widespread reports of China’s struggles to hit ambitious PV targets, particularly with distributed projects. Beijing-based solar expert, Frank Haugwitz, reveals the difficulties Chinese developers experienced.

Months after becoming an unexpected star of the 2014 football World Cup, solar struck gold once again in Brazil when it attracted huge interest in a national energy auction. But low bidding prices and the complexities of a local content requirement have tempered some of the excitement about Brazil’s emergence as a solar heavyweight. Lucy Woods weighs up its prospects.

Having blazed a trail in building PV power plants in Africa, Norway’s Scatec Solar recently secured financing for its first 43MW of projects in Jordan. Its chief executive, Raymond Carlsen, tells Ben Willis how the company is making the projects work financially.