Special Focus - Asset management
www.solarquarter.com
Volume 09. l Issue 1
January 2019
Our Step Towards A Clean, Green And Sustainable Future. We at Mahindra Susten, believe in creating a sustainable tomorrow by enabling innovation today. With a portfolio of over 3.2 GWp, projects at various stages of execution, we are one of the leading solar solutions company in India. Our focus on quality, innovation and ensuring our customers get the right solutions at the right time for all things solar is proof of our commitment towards our customers and also the environment. With ‘Sustainability’ at our core, we are your partners in creating a better world. 3.2 GWp + Utility Scale Solar Portfolio
671 MWp International Solar Portfolio
3.4 GW Asset Management Portfolio
58 MWp Rooftop Solar EPC Portfolio
50,00,000 sq.ft Design Build Portfolio
1300 MWp + Solar Monitoring Portfolio
477 MWp + MSAT100 Solar Tracker Portfolio
www.mahindrasusten.com email: SUSTEN@mahindra.com
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 3
in conversation
Table of Contents Paying It Forwards: How Investing In Experience From European Asset Managers Can Earn Over The Longer Term
Mr. Pratyush Thakur, Managing Director, Statkraft Solar Solutions Pivate Limited
30
“Statkraft Plans To Build 2 GW Of Solar Projects Globally In Next Few Years”
12 Mr. Neelesh Garg, Director, Saatvik Green Energy “We Are Installing New Machines, Which Will Increase Our Cumulative Capacity To 500MW”
Are Rooftop Solar Plants a Solution to Power Cuts?
14
36 Mr. J.M Shah, Managing Director, WEST COAST Engineering Works Pvt. Ltd
14 Integrated PV Panels Create New Solar Design Possibilities 16
“We have supplied Aluminium Walkways to over 200 plus rooftop solar projects across India”
Cover Story Changing Times For Indian Solar Asset Management Industry: Outlook 2019 ...................................................................................18-19
Product Feature: Avi Solar - Solar PV Plant Data Collection By EagleSun
....24-25
SCADA ................................................................................................21
Sanelite - The company is expanding its dealership network
to reach the farthest corners of the country .............................23
Waree - Lightening Arrestor (La) Or Surge Protection Device (Spd): What Is Of Utmost Necessity For A Solar Plant? .........24
Company Feature: Goodwe - Technological Innovation Is Goodwe’s Core
Competence................................. ......................................................29
Excelsior - Our services can be exclusively tailor-made to
Ginlong Solis - Solar PV Plant Data Collection By
EagleSun SCADA ..............................................................................28
provide an end-to-end solution ....................................................29
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 4
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 5
India News
C
abinet Approves MoU Between India And France On Technical Bilateral Cooperation In The Field Of New And Renewable Energy
The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has been approved the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and France on technical bilateral cooperation in the field of new and renewable energy. The MoU was signed on 3rd October, 2018.
The 50 MW LNG based power plant to be established by wholly owned subsidiary of NTPC Limited – NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam (NVVN) is expected to significantly improve the quality of life of the residents of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and give a boost to economic development in the area. To be set up at cost of Rs. 387.80 Crore, the plant will take approx. 18 months to be operational after Award of work. The plant shall be Operational through Dual Fuel - LNG or HSD to be sourced from Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU) and High Speed Diesel (HSD) to be sourced from Indian Oil Corporation’s (IOCL) existing Depot at Andaman and Nicobar as per requirement.
Salient Features
Shri Manoj Sinha, Union Minister of State (I/C) for Communication and Minister of State for
India and France aim to establish the basis for a cooperative institutional relationship to
Railways; Admiral Devendra Kumar Joshi, PVSM, AVSM, YSM, NM, VSM (Retd.) Lt. Governor;
encourage and promote technical bilateral cooperation on new and renewable issues on
Shri Bishnu Pada Ray, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha and dignitaries from the Union
the basis of mutual benefit, equality and reciprocity. The technical cooperation will cover
Territory were present on the occasion. Shri Gurdeep Singh, CMD, NTPC, Officials from
joint research working groups, pilot projects, capacity building programs, study tour, case
Electricity Department of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Ministry of Power, NTPC and
studies and the sharing of experience/expertise.
NVVN were present during the programme.
Benefits The MoU will help in strengthening bilateral cooperation between India and France.
I
ndia Welcomes Zombia To International Solar Alliance India has welcomed Zambia as a member of the International Solar Alliance, with Vice
F
irst 5MW SKY Project—Contributed By TATA Power & Goodwe
Suryashakti Kisan Yojana project which was launched by Gujarat government in early 2018 brought tremendous attentions as Gujarat is poised to become the first state in the country to roll out a scheme where farmers can utilize solar to generate electricity for farming and irrigation as well as selling the surplus to the electric grid to obtain additional income. TATA Power Solar is currently installing the first 5 MW pilot project site by site from the end of 2018. They particularly selected GoodWe solar inverters for this demanding project thanks to its extraordinary adaptability for various grid situations and outstanding efficiency during extreme weathers such as non-degradation under 50°C extreme hot climate. A
President Venkaiah Naidu expressing hope for an early ratification of the Framework Agreement by Zambia During a meeting with a Parliamentary delegation from Zambia here on Monday, led by Patrick Matibini, the Speaker of Zambia’s National Assembly, Vice President Naidu also welcomed frequent exchanges between the two parliaments and said that such interactions would be beneficial in sharing experience and learning from each other’s best practices. He further mentioned that the Indian Parliament would be happy to associate with the Zambian Parliament in any specific area, including training of its officials in the institutional or technical human resource development, according to an official press release. India Zambia share warm & friendly relations based on common values such as commitment
wide range of products were chosen for this pilot project, capacity covers 5-60KW.
to democracy, liberty, equality and rule of law,” the Vice President tweeted.
“Such government projects must have higher requirements for quality and service, which
Vice President Naidu also stated, “ India was one of the first countries to recognize Zambia
secures investment payback and guarantees longevity of solar system, which would differentiate us from many other players on the market. EPC and developer giants tend to pay increasing attention on the overall strengths of a supplier, instead of just looking at
after its independence in 1964. Our warm and friendly bilateral relations have evolved and strengthened over the years. The visit of the President of India to Zambia this year has given a fresh impetus to these ties.”
the price” said James Hou, Sales Manager for Asia Pacific.
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inancing Signed For 250 MW Of Rooftop Solar In India India’s National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development and the Green Climate
U
L Completes First BHEL Solar Module Tests For BIS Certification Programme
Testing enables India’s largest power generation equipment manufacturer to lead the way
Fund have signed a deal to pour USD 100 million in private sector initiatives for rooftop
in building a quality domestic solar industry ecosystem
solar deployment across India.
UL, a leading global safety science company, has successfully completed the first series
The funds will come in the form of a loan from the GCF to NABARD and will be disbursed
of tests for solar panels manufactured by the Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited under the
under a USD-250-million project by Tata Cleantech Capital Ltd, NABARD said after an
mandatory certification programme of the Bureau of Indian Standards.
event held on the sidelines of the COP24 conference taking place in Katowice, Poland. The
One of the country’s earliest manufacturers of solar modules, BHEL has a module
specific project aims to support the installation of 250 MW of rooftop photovoltaic arrays
manufacturing capacity of 226 megawatts at its state-of-the-art facility in Bengaluru. , UL
in India’s commercial, industrial and residential sectors.
collaborates with BHEL on various projects and will continue to support the company in
The GCF approved the USD-100-million credit proposal in March. It then said this will be
the BIS programme.
the first private sector facility proposal sanctioned by GCF to India.
“Over the past three decades, BHEL has led the development of solar manufacturing
Tata Cleantech Capital is a joint venture between India’s Tata Capital and the International
capacity in India, enhancing sustainability and environmental goals. The ongoing efforts
Finance Corp.
to strengthen the quality of solar modules through the BIS certification is an important development, and BHEL fully subscribes to the programme. UL played an important role in
S
olar Rooftop Installation In India At Record 1,538 MW In Year To September
India witnessed record installation of 1,538 MW of solar rooftop in the year ended September 30, taking the total capacity in the category to 3,399 MW, according to a report. “There was record installation of 1,538 MW in last 12 months ended September 2018. Total rooftop solar capacity reached 3,399 MW on September 30, 2018,” said the report by
our journey to achieve the highest standards of quality and performance,” says Rajababu D., general manager, BHEL.
I
ndia To Bid 80 Gigawatt Of Solar And Wind Energy Projects By 2020
India has declared the trajectory of bidding 60 gigawatt capacity of solar energy and
consulting firm Bridge to India.
20 GW capacity of wind energy by March 2020, leaving two years time for execution of
It said rooftop solar capacity is expected to touch 15.3 GW by March 2022 in a status quo
projects, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy said.
scenario. This is about 38 per cent of the government’s 40 GW target. According to the
A total of about 73.35 GW renewable energy capacity has been installed in the country as
report, commercial and industrial installation consumer segment dominates the market
of October, 2018, from all renewable energy sources. This includes about 34.98 GW from
with 70 per cent share, while residential segment continues to lag with just 9 per cent.
wind, 24.33 GW from solar, 4.5 GW from small hydro power, and 9.54 GW from bio-power.
It also stated that OPEX model where third party developers own and develop projects on
Further, projects worth 46.75 GW capacity have been bid out under installation. According
customer sites, is still growing faster than rest of the market and added 559 MW capacity
to the Paris accord on climate change, India had pledged that by 2030 40 per cent of
in the last 12 months (35 percent of the market share).
installed power generation capacity shall be based on clean sources. And determined that
The study also highlighted that Maharashtra (473 MW), Tamil Nadu (312 MW), Karnataka (272 MW), Rajasthan (270 MW) and Uttar Pradesh (223 MW) are the top five states accounting for 54 per cent share of the total market.
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TPC to set up 50 MW LNG Project in Andaman Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi laid the Foundation Stone of the
50 MW LNG Based Power Project on 30th December, 2018 at Hope Town, South Andaman.
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175 GW of renewable energy capacity to be installed by 2022. This includes 100 GW from solar, 60 GW from wind, 10 GW from bio-power and 5 GW from small hydro power. India has fifth global position for overall installed renewable energy capacity, fourth position for wind power and fifth position for solar power. The country registered lowest ever solar tariffs in India of Rs 2.44 per unit in reverse auctions carried out by the Solar Energy Corporation of India in May 2017, for 200 megawatt and again in July, 2018, for 600 MW. It also registered lowest ever wind tariff of Rs 2.43 per unit in a tender of 500 MW project by Gujarat government in December 2017.
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Asia News
I
nnergex Signs Two Long-Term Power Purchase Agreements For Solar And Battery Energy Storage Projects In Hawaii
Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. is pleased to announce the signing of two 25-year power purchase agreements that provide a fixed price with the Hawaii Electric Light Company and the Maui Electric Company for the electricity to be produced at the Hale Kuawehi and Paeahu solar and battery energy storage projects. Both projects have a proposed commercial operation date of 2022. The agreements are subject to approval by the Public Utilities Commission of Hawaii. “With these two important and unique projects in Hawaii, we are excited to enter the growing and promising battery energy storage market, in which we intend to become a key player,” said Michel Letellier, President and Chief Executive Officer of Innergex. “The technological advancements in battery storage are changing the way utilities service their customers and we intend to become a solid partner with them in managing their power needs.” The two 25-year power purchase agreements are for dispatchable energy, allowing the respective utilities to dispatch the facilities as they deem appropriate to maintain grid stability and maximise renewable energy use on Maui and Hawaii islands. The Hale Kuawehi solar project is a 30 MWAC facility with 120 MWh of battery storage located on the island of Hawaii. Its average annual electricity generation could reach 92,000 MWh. The Paeahu solar project is a 15 MWAC facility with a 60 MWh battery storage facility on the island of Maui. It could generate on average annually 45,000 MWh.
I
raq Takes First Concrete Steps Into Solar The United Nations Development Program wants consultants for Iraq’s PV policy, aimed
at helping the Ministry of Electricity in the construction of utility-scale solar plants, as well
The large markets of China, India, Japan and the US are likely to decline, due to changes in their energy markets. In 2017, APAC constituted 73.6% of the market value due to the significant movements in the Chinese market. Nirushan Rajasekaram, Power Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “The declining prices of PV modules and other auxiliary technologies such as inverters has translated into lower project costs; benefiting project developers and enabling proliferation within price sensitive markets. The declining price trend will be critical in driving the global market value down to $23.7 billion in 2022.”
S
ingapore-Based Investment Firm Eyes Powering Off-Grid South-East Asia
A NEW firm based out of Singapore has set out to build and run clean energy projects across the region. CleanGrid Partners was unveiled on Tuesday as a collaboration among Singapore’s WEnergy Global, consultancy ICMG Partners and energy company Greenway Grid Global, which is backed by Japanese electricity giant Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco)’s Tepco PowerGrid. The investment entity has US$60 million in the kitty - with each partner putting up an equal share - with US$20 million earmarked for short-term deployment. It aims to build up a portfolio of electrification projects worth US$100 million, within four years, with an exclusive focus on South-east Asia. WEnergy Global’s flagship micro-grid project on the Philippine island of Palawan - which electrifies households and commercial players through hybrid power sources such as solar and diesel - is now part of the joint venture plan, according to a statement given to the press.
as in the deployment of 5 MW of residential PV. Frost and Sullivan forecasts around 5 GW of solar capacity may be installed by 2028. The United Nations Development Program has issued a tender to seek solar consultants to help the Iraqi Ministry of Electricity implement its catalyzing the use of solar photovoltaic energy policy, an initiative aimed at deploying 5 MW of residential PV capacity through the Bytti residential development in Najaf, in central-south Iraq, and also supporting the construction of large-scale PV power plants. The $35.1 million project is also intended to support the development of a regulatory framework, technical guidelines, capacity building and institutional arrangements for the development of public and private independent power producer solar projects. Interested consultants have until January 15 to submit an offer. Meanwhile, Frost & Sullivan Business Development Manager, Ali Mirmohammad says Iraq is expected to have an installed capacity of more than 5 GW of PV – plus about 1 GW of wind energy and 0.2 GW of bioenergy – by 2028, a capacity that would be enough to satisfy 10% of the country’s power demand.
E
lettronica Santerno Signs A Contract For The Supply Of 60 MW In Jordan For 2 Million Euros
Elettronica Santerno signed a contract for supply of photovoltaic inverters to be installed in a 60 MW plant in Jordan, one of the largest of the region. Santerno will supply its central inverters TG1800 1500V, about € 2 million, in 2019. The agreement includes the supply of additional services such as training, supervision, assistance and maintenance to be executed on site during installation and in the following years. The contract was signed with Sterling & Wilson, one of the largest international EPCs, and confirms the ability of Elettronica Santerno to meet all its customers’ technical requirements, even the most demanding and structured and provide outstanding, high-quality products. Santerno is further consolidating its presence in the Middle East and particularly in Jordan, a country characterized by a huge growth program in the renewable energy sector. Since the beginning of this year Elettronica Santerno has already signed binding contracts in the photovoltaic sector for over 100 MW, differentiating both customers and countries of interest. Such achievements are aligned with the company’s commercial development plan, aiming to replicate the results achieved in 2018 when a total 800MW contracts were signed.
A
G
lobaldata: Apac Will Lead Global Solar PV Market Volume Through 2022
Despite a drop in its share, the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, with its large population base and strong requirement for electricity generation capacity, will continue to influence the global solar PV module market over the forecast period 2018-2022, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company. The company’s latest report, ‘Solar PV Module, Update 2018’, reveals that market saturation, reduction in subsidies and declining costs of technologies are the major factors impacting the global solar PV module market. It states that the global market volume is estimated to decline at a negative compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.8% from 87.5 gigawatt (GW) in 2018 to 78.13GW in 2022.
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orld Bank Group Arm IFC Sees US$20 Trillion Worth Of Green Investment Opportunities In India, Asia-Pacific
IFC’s climate related investments accounted for 36 percent out of the US$23.3 billion invested in 74 countries in fiscal 2018 – an all-time high. International Finance Corporation, a sister organisation of the World Bank and member of the World Bank Group, is set on climate related investments, with US$20 trillion worth of opportunities in Asia-Pacific and India by 2030. According to the IFC, 60 percent of the area expected to be urban worldwide by 2030 is yet to be built, as emerging countries develop and migration to cities heightens. This will provide opportunities for US$29.4 trillion of climate-related investments in sectors from renewable energy to electric vehicles, of which nearly 70 per cent will be in East Asia, the Pacific and India. “The whole sustainable investment space has now demonstrated it is a profitable business, so this is where we think it makes sense to put capital to work,” said Vivek Pathak, IFC’s regional director for East Asia and the Pacific. IFC focuses on investment in sectors like renewable energy, agriculture, green buildings, electric transport and water management. For the year ending June 2018, a record 36 per cent of IFC’s US$23.3 billion investments made in 74 countries were in green projects. In East Asia and the Pacific, China took the largest chunk of US$3.4 billion. It is not just IFC that has set its sights on such investments. Tokyo-headquartered MUFG is among international banks focusing on Asean countries with total investments of US$10 billion over the past six years, making it the biggest foreign bank in Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia.
sia-Pacific Will Lead Global Solar PV Market Asia-Pacific (APAC) region will continue to influence the global solar PV module
market over the forecast period 2018-2022, according to GlobalData The company’s latest report, ‘Solar PV Module, Update 2018’, reveals that market saturation, reduction in subsidies and declining costs of technologies are the major factors impacting the global solar PV module market. It states that the global market volume is estimated to decline at a negative compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.8% from 87.5 gigawatt (GW) in 2018 to 78.13GW in 2022.
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G
oogle Signs First Solar PPA In Asia Global technology giant Google this week announced that it has signed an
agreement to purchase the output from a 10 MW PV installation in Tainan City, Taiwan, to power its Changhua County data center on the island’s west coast. The agreement represents Google’s first move to procure renewable energy anywhere in Asia, and the first agreement made since a recent change to Taiwan’s Electricity Act allowed non-utility companies to buy renewable energy directly.
Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 8
3.125MW
Central Inverter Solution Higher yields Lower system cost Suitable for harsh environments
Sineng Electric Co., Ltd. NO.6 Hehui Road, Huishan District, Wuxi, China
Sineng Electric (India) Pvt Ltd. Plot No. 56 & 57, Bommasandra - Jigani Link Rd Industrial Area, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 9
Global News
K
enyan Electrification Plan Could Achieve Universal Access By 2022
Approximately 75% of Kenyans have access to electricity from grid and off-grid sources, according to the World Bank, but the Kenyan government wants to increase that to 100% by 2022. The Kenya National Electrification Strategy references mini-grids, independent solar power plants, and off-grid technology as options to utilize. About 49 million people
$
25.38/MWH Bid Sets New Record Low For 24/7 Block Mixing Wind And Solar At Chile Tender
Verano Capital, an American project developer headquartered in Santiago, announced that the 47 MW solar project they initially developed was selected in Chile’s latest energy tender with a winning bid at $25.38/MWh, the lowest 24/7 block price combining solar
live in Kenya, and most of them are in rural areas.
and wind ever recorded in the history of energy tenders.
“Tremendous achievement in scaling up connectivity has been made over the last few
The winning bid was offered by a solar project which will be coupled with wind projects
years. Total access to electricity now stands at 75%. However, there was a need to come
to offer a 24/7 supply over a 20-year period. Dylan Rudney, CEO of Verano Capital, who
up with a new National Electrification Strategy to deal with the challenges of bringing the
originally designed and developed the solar project before partnering with the fund who
entire country under electrification in an economically viable manner,” stated Hon. Charles Keter, Cabinet Secretary of the Ministry of Energy. Universal access is part of the country’s development roadmap to turn it into a middle-
eventually took the project to bid, expressed his satisfaction with the results of the tender. “It was an extremely competitive tender. Contracts were awarded at an average price of
income country. Electrification can help move the country forward to bring about greater
$32.50/MWh, which represents a 75% drop from the peak of $130/MWh reached in the
manufacturing, food security, affordable housing, and universal healthcare. Geospatial
2013 tenders. These are the lowest renewable energy prices we have ever seen on a 24/7
technology will be used to help generate objective data for electrification planning.
energy auction anywhere in the world. This will be most directly beneficial to Chilean
The World Bank press release states that over the next 5 years, there may be $14.8 billion in
energy consumers, but it also underpins the changing trend in the energy industry,
Kenyan energy investment opportunities. Kenya has plenty of renewable energy potential
where conventional energy sources are no longer able to compete with increasingly low
— geothermal alone could be 10 gigawatts. One source states the wind power potential is at least 1 GW, and that large scale hydro-electric’s potential there is 1,500 megawatts. Installed solar power currently is at about 2 MW, according to one source, but the country could readily get to 150 to 250 MW.
renewable energy costs,” said Rudney. Verano Capital, whose core business is to offer turnkey development, EPC, O&M, and asset management services to investment funds, has ambitious growth plans going forward. Verano is the leader in the PMGD* development market in Chile, with five operating utility-
E
xperienced UK Solar Energy Company Is Exporting Solar Panels To Homes, Businesses Across Europe
Voltacon Solar, which is based at the Burnsall Road Industrial Estate in Coventry, was
scale projects and five more to be commissioned in 2017. In addition, the company has over twenty projects seeking equity under development, representing a 150 MW pipeline to be commissioned over the next 18 months.
established in 2002 and assembles and tests off grid and energy storage systems from its purpose-built premises which has 20kW Solar Array installed and multiple test facilities for solar panels. Voltacon Solar managing director Stefanos Kandilidis designs the solar panels which are manufactured in China while the batteries are manufactured in Germany as the company
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ncavis AG Acquires Another Solar Park In The Netherlands And Increases Its Generation Capacity In The Dutch Market To Over 100 MW
supplies customers with the entire package needed to install solar systems.
SDAX-listed Hamburg-based solar and wind park operator Encavis AG has acquired
Stefanos said they have successfully installed more than 20MW of grid-tied systems
another solar park with a generation capacity of over 14 megawatts in the Netherlands.
throughout Europe over the last 16 years. We have residential and business customers in
At the same time, the three solar parks acquired in 2018 back then ready-for-construction
the UK and Europe and until we started selling solar panels, we never realised so many
have been completed and connected to the Dutch power grid. This gives Encavis AG an
British people had holiday homes abroad. We have now sold solar panels to people living in Spain, Portugal, France, Greece and Gran Canaria as well as every corner of the UK. African rural communities that live completely off the grid have trusted our business to
active generation capacity of more than 100 MW in the Netherlands. The electricity generated by the park is sold long-term for 15 years for a fixed renumeration
supply complete photovoltaic systems including solar panels, batteries, inverters and
of almost 11 Euro-Cent per kilowatt, hereafter to the then prevailing market price.
accessories.”
Encavis expects the Zierikzee solar park to generate annual revenues of roughly EUR 1.4
“Some of our customers live completely off the grid in farms in Wales and Scotland and
million as of the first full year of operation. The total investment including project-related
rely on the solar panels for their heat and lighting since they have no means of connecting to electricity. Since we started selling solar panels in 2002, the cost of the equipment has markedly reduced which means it is only taking customers four to five years to start
financing costs amounts to EUR 10.6 million. The seller holds a remaining share of 10 percent in the solar park.
receiving the financial benefits. The technology is viable and affordable to the public
With the new solar park acquired in January 2019 Encavis AG increases its active generation
because it isn’t as expensive as it was when we started trading in 2002 and with the cost of
capacity in the Netherlands to some 106 MW. Encavis thus contributes to a sustainable,
electricity rising on average by eight per cent each year, more and more of our customers
green energy supply in the Netherlands.
whether they live in the UK or abroad are taking full advantage to switch from fossil fuel to renewable energy.”
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oltalia Begins Construction Of Its First Solar + Storage Project
T
aaleri And Masdar To Launch A Joint Venture To Accelerate Wind And Solar Renewable Energy Development In Central And Eastern Europe
Voltalia announces the beginning of the construction of the Savane des Pères facility, a 3.8
Taaleri Energia, a Finnish wind and solar developer and fund manager, and Masdar, the
MW solar plant coupled with a 2.6 MW / 2.9 MWh battery system, tailored to local needs
Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, signed an agreement for the establishment of a joint
in French Guiana.
venture with the aim of developing renewable energy projects in Central and Eastern
“Building upon a first experience as EPC contractor for a 2 MW storage project built in
Europe on 15 January 2019. The joint venture aims to build upon of the success of Masdar
2018 in the UK, Voltalia has now the in-house expertise to carry out the development,
and Taaleri’s ongoing activities in the Western Balkans by expanding their collaboration
construction and operation of storage installations. This is an important addition to our activities, paving the way for further developments on this fast-growing market”, comments Sébastien Clerc, Chief Executive Officer of Voltalia. The Savane des Pères project, first of its kind for Voltalia, was won in June 2016 during the
through the joint development of onshore wind and solar photovoltaic projects. The joint venture agreement was signed by Karri Haaparinne, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Taaleri Plc, and Bader Al Lamki, Executive Director of Clean Energy, Masdar, on
tender launched by the French Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy.
the sidelines of the World Future Energy Summit, which is being organized as part of the
This tender aimed at fostering solar energy development in French overseas departments.
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2019 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center.
The solution brought up by Voltalia was a 3.8 MW solar power plant, coupled with an
Bader Al Lamki, Executive Director of Clean Energy, Masdar, said: “What we’ve accomplished
advanced forecasting tool and a 2.6 MW energy storage unit using lithium-ion batteries. Storage will be used to raise the level of predictability and the reliability of the solar plant’s production by injecting electricity on the grid when it is most needed by households. A particular attention was paid to the choice of the site as the project will upgrade a former landfill located near Sinnamary city.
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in partnership with Taaleri in Serbia and Jordan is a testament to the important role that strong partnerships play in unlocking access to renewable energy. We are proud to build on the experiences gained through our strong collaboration, to help countries in Central and Eastern Europe meet their renewable energy goals.”
Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 10
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 11
In Conversation
“Statkraft Plans To Build 2 GW Of Solar Projects Globally In Next Few Years” Mr. Pratyush Thakur, Managing Director, Statkraft Solar Solutions Pivate Limited
What has given you the most satisfaction in your current position?
Has Safeguard duty affected your plans for this year and do you
Statkraft, started its operations in solar space in India with a small JV in Sept 2015. We
target?
had a modest target of developing about 10 MW of Solar in the distributed space testing
There was a slight slowdown in the project implementation and new project announcement
different technical and commercial business models. We are very happy that we could achieve that by commissioning 5 projects across India with 7 customers. We developed onsite rooftop as well as open access based ground mount projects. The biggest satisfaction came from the fact that despite having challenging environments all our projects were completed without any major safety incidents. Infact, our 5MWp project in Chennai was adjudged the best in-campus project testifying the great execution and operational capability of the team.
What are your thoughts on present currency fluctuations, rising interest rates, location where the projects are to be built and the evacuation infrastructure?
find it as a hurdle for Indian Solar industry to achieve its 2020
due to unclarity on the SGD for some time in 2018. However, there is no major setback to the industry as such, as the module prices have come down mitigating the impact of the SGD to some extent. It is also good if the SGD really helps the Indian players to come out of the difficulties and start competing with global players in quality, cost and performance. The beauty of this SGD is that it is time bound and we feel that after two years Indian project developers will have option of buying locally or internationally in a level playing field.
Coming to the State level do you think that the State Governments and the utilities should take a more proactive role in promoting renewables?
Currency fluctuations do create additional risk for project developers. In an extremely
Yes, renewable energy is distributed and any measures put in place to develop RE in
competitive market it is imperative to cover this risk and developers hedge the currency
India, has to be done by Centre and States together. State utilities have already been
risk using the products available in the market.
quite proactive by participating in the tenders for purchase of power large scale solar
Interest rates are depending on the liquidity in the debt capital markets. Due to certain
development. However, rooftop and open access solar face challenges in form of
recent events, it is observed that the liquidity is stressed. Banks are also facing high NPAs
unpredictable policy implementation and implementation of charges and losses. Net
and want to reduce Asset Liability Mismatch. This impacts the availability of long term debt
metering policies have been put in place but have restrictions which limit the growth of
finance for projects. Access to capital is one of the important factors for renewable project
rooftop solar.
developers and rising interest rates are not comforting. However, we do not see much impact of that translating into discovered power prices.
What have been some of the biggest challenges of maintaining
Solar projects will continue to be concentrated in high irradiance zones like Rajasthan,
high standards of social and environmental responsibility?
Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamilnadu. However, availability of evacuation infrastructure is going to be quite crucial. We observe that Karnataka and Tamilnadu which have large solar and wind installed capacity are struggling with lack of adequate infrastructure in some pockets. This results in curtailment of generation from projects resulting in lower realization and hence impacting the financial viability of such projects. Forecasting and scheduling of generation from solar and wind project can significantly assist seamless integration of these technologies with the grid. It also helps the grid operator in managing the grid and reducing curtailment. We believe that use of technology and smarter forecasting and scheduling will also help reducing the curtailment. Statkraft
Statkraft maintains highest standards on Corporate responsibility with respect to conducting our business ethically, making sure impact on environment is minimal/negligible. While we have found very positive intent to do business with responsibility, the awareness among the supplier community needs to improve. With our experience in multiple projects now, we have been able to train our installation and supply chain partners in the best practices. We are quite optimistic that we will be able to build a lot of projects in a responsible way, albeit it may take a bit more time as we will have to keep informing and training our partners and other stakeholders in the course.
Markets, our sister concern, is one of the largest Qualified Coordinating Agencies and manages more than 4GW of portfolio in forecasting and scheduling.
The tariffs for solar are already very low, considering some of the latest bidding, how sustainable is it? In large-scale solar, government has done a good job in taking care of the highest risk areas – two of them being land and transmission risks. Credit risk has not been fully mitigated but with the intermediation of SECI and NTPC, the risk perception has decreased for the investor. This means there are many types of capital providers looking at that risk space, leading to cut throat competition. All these companies have put their acts together and are pricing the risks in. We believe that the price discovered is quite low, however not unsustainable. The biggest help for the winners in the tenders has been the reduction in
The biggest help for the winners in the tenders has been the reduction in solar module prices. The developer gets a few months to set up the project. Module prices have fallen between 5-20% in a matter of few quarters in the past leading to lowering of project construction costs.
solar module prices. The developer gets a few months to set up the project. Module prices have fallen between 5-20% in a matter of few quarters in the past leading to lowering of project construction costs.
Will we see more M&As in the solar sector? Solar sector is in the growth phase and has found interest from multiple investor types. From local conglomerates, to international utilities are looking to have a share of this growth. Many entrepreneurs have raised capital and got great beginning. However, this has resulted in intense competition and very low-price realization for most of the market participants. We believe that for sustainable growth some consolidation is bound to happen. This will provide stability to the market. In Statkraft we are looking at certain targets to help us achieve our growth ambitions in an inorganic way. However, that is not our only strategy and in-house project development is our core business activity. Statkraft plans to build 2 GW of solar (and 4 GW of wind) in next few years and with its highly
We observe that Karnataka and Tamilnadu which have large solar and wind installed capacity are struggling with lack of adequate infrastructure in some pockets. This results in curtailment of generation from projects resulting in lower realization and hence impacting the financial viability of such projects.
growing solar sector India certainly presents itself as a major candidate for growth in Statkraft.
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Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 12
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 13
In Conversation
“We Are Installing New Machines, Which Will Increase Our Cumulative Capacity To 500MW” Mr. Neelesh Garg, Director, Saatvik Green Energy
How has the year 2018 been for Saatvik Green Energy? Could you please tell us about some of your recent developments 2018 has been a very crucial year for us, as we have grown as a company and as brand. We have constantly advanced in terms of technology and quality. We have made a strong hold in the region of our operation. We have also made our first successful international supply, opening a new market for us. We have received BIS for our modules, which is a necessity
cumulative capacity to 500MW. The commissioning of the machines will start next month, and will be ready for production in the new financial year. We are aggressively negotiating long term contracts in line with our expansion plans.
What differentiates your company’s offerings from your peers? As we know that Solar PV Modules are primarily similar across brands, but fundamentally,
to sell in the domestic market now.
there is a vast difference. It all depends on the recipe of raw material used and the in-
Has implementation of Safeguard duty helped local cell manufacturers?
send out in the market. In terms of technology, we are offering Mono PERC, glass-glass as
The industry has not really been able to understand the aftermath of the safeguard duty
process quality. We ensure that both the above clearly come out in the product that we well as bi-facial modules. Our new machines are capable of handling these modules with utmost efficiency, leading to maximum customer satisfaction.
implementation, I am not sure about the cell manufacturers, as they are still not competitive in terms of price and quality. Most of them have shut their facilities. Developers are still getting modules from China, due to bank-ability issues, and favorable financing options.
Can you tell us more about your existing manufacturing capacity & expansion plans of PV modules. At present we have a manufacturing capacity of 200 MW annually. The state of the art facility is situated in Ambala, Haryana. At present, the machines installed are from our technology partner ECOPROGETTI. We are installing new machines, which will increase our
We have constantly advanced in terms of technology and quality. We have made a strong hold in the region of our operation. We have also made our first successful international supply, opening a new market for us.
“We Have Supplied Aluminium Walkways & Handrails To 500+ Solar Rooftop Projects” Mr. J.M Shah, Managing Director, WEST COAST Engineering Works Pvt. Ltd
Can you tell us more about the products and services provided by WEST-COAST ENGG. WORKS in the Solar industry We would like to introduce ourselves as a leading Engineering and Manufacturing Company established in 1964 specialized in following products: 1. Complete Rooftop Walkway System including supporting structure for safe walking on SOLAR ROOFTOP PLANTS. 2. Aluminium Gratings, Platform Solid Gratings. (ALUGRATE). 3. Aluminium Hand Rails/Alurails for roof top safety purpose. 4. MMS for Solar Rooftop
West Coast Engineering Works have supplied walkways at Radhasoami Satsang Beas, Punjab, which is the WORLD’S LARGEST SINGLE ROOFTOP SOLAR POWER PLANT. What challenges did you face during its implementation? i) While executing this project we faced lot of difficulties as the walkway was to be installed on Asbestos Sheet. Therefore load transfer of the walkway panel was transferred directly on Purlin through support system designed by us. Whereas in case of metallic roof partly, we can transfer the load through the roof as well as Purlin that makes a simple job for support system. ii) The construction had to be carried out in extreme winter and the material was installed
5. Aluminium Ladders. (ALULAD).
in very low temperatures. The site was having lot of variation of temperature, in
6. Aluminium Access Covers.
summer it was 55°C and in winter it was 05°C which is 50 degree thermal variation
7. Road Fencing Rails (MOTO RAILS)
and which has created expansion and contraction. Therefore, we have to redesign the
USP: We develop niche products with advanced design capabilities that offer value addition. Our products have pioneered the Gulf market since 1978, giving us a strong presence in the Middle East, hence, the quality & compliance is as per international standards.
walkway system considering this fact. As our successful design is working since last 6 years without any problem which shows that our Aluminiium Walkway is successful for the purpose of implementation.
We have experience in manufacturing all types of Aluminium gratings having its application
What is your demand outlook for the rooftop solar segment. ?
at various Industrial Rooftop plants, telescopes , sewage treatment plants, boiler trucks,
The Solar Roof top market has immense opportunity as Solar Ground Mounting has limitation
even national & internatinal sports stadiums. With respect to Rooftop solar projects, each
due to expansion and availability of land. In India there are thousands of industrial plants having
roof has a unique solution and we customise to ensure that only the most optimised design
a multimillion sq.mtr. of roof un-explored which can be utilised for solar power generation.
is supplied. Customization is required for the walkay and for the supporting systems which play a pivotal role in most cases. We take presitage in stating we also export Aluminium walkways to International rooftop projects. We encourage use of Handrail in most rooftops for increased safety and avoiding fatal accidents. Our rich experience plays an unique role of a technical expert and design consultant which has helped our clients to achieve superior designed techno-economic solution for every roof out there. WE DON’T ACT AS VENDOR BUT WE ACT AS A SOLUTION PROVIDER TO OUR CUSTOMERS.
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‘’Our latest area of development has been the MMS for Solar Rooftop Projects. Solar PV Panel mounting support system is a critical cost bound product. We have optimally designed Aluminium support brackets used to mount PV panels on solar rooftop.’’ Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 14
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 15
Industry Industry Insights Insights
Integrated PV Panels Create New Solar Design Possibilities
Building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) panels are the latest innovation to hit the solar
For instance, during renovations of the Bell Labs facilities in New Jersey, architects decided
market, increasing the design and installation options for residential and commercial solar
to feature a largest-of-its-kind photovoltaic skylight as a way to publicize the company’s
consumers seeking to achieve their energy goals. Unlike “traditional” solar installations, in
dedication to renewable energy sources. As consumers become increasingly attracted to
which panels are mounted on frames on top of or nearby the building they provide power
companies that prioritize green practices, it’s not a bad idea to put your solar installation
to, building-integrated panels blend seamlessly with other construction materials as part
front and center.
of the structure itself. Whether you are building a new home or commercial facility or
On the other hand, home or building owners in areas with historic designations or picky
retrofitting an existing structure, BIPV offers several exciting design possibilities.
homeowners associations can use BIPV technology to experience the benefits of solar
We’re going to focus on the impact this new technology is having on solar design and
energy without making drastic alterations to the appearance of their structure. The
aesthetics but first should note that integrated solar panels can also be more efficient
unobtrusive (or even invisible) visual beauty of these new product lines allows them to
and less expensive than traditional solar installations. The constant innovation in the solar
be implemented almost anywhere. Perhaps most importantly, aesthetic concerns are no
sector has led to new technologies that are lighter, more durable, and more effective than
longer a barrier to entry for those who want to save money and reduce their environmental
ever before.
impact.
Combining Form & Function
Beyond Traditional Solar Design
Almost every major solar manufacturer has now released a line of building-integrated
Another exciting element of building-integrated solar panels is the ability to put them
photovoltaic panels, each with its own unique design elements, technical specifications, and capabilities. Some directly mimic roof tiles, like Tesla’s Solar Roof array including “active” (solar collecting) and “inactive” tiles. Others, such as MiaSolé’s flexible solar modules, are flexible and can be fitted onto curved structures or incorporated into framing materials.
almost anywhere the sun will shine. While most traditional solar installations are on top of buildings (where they get the most direct light), BIPV technology can be used on the sides of structures, integrated into windows, and even incorporated into solar greenhouses, carports (such as this carport we recently created for a client), or shade structures.
Some are so thin and transparent that they can be applied to windows or skylights and capture energy without blocking sunlight. What every BIPV panel has in common is the integration of form and function. As SEIAnotes, “they serve as both the outer layer of a structure and generate electricity for on-site use or export to the grid.” This dual function means that BIPV can “provide savings in materials and electricity costs, reduce pollution, and add to the architectural appeal of a building” while also reducing the incremental cost of solar technology for consumers. Like any solar panels, they also have an immediate impact on the energy costs of the building
As a design element, building-integrated photovoltaics offer several new possibilities. The biggest impact they are having on solar
they’re a part of.
design is their ability to seamlessly blend
Solar Design: Blend In or Stand Out?
into new or pre-existing structures. Now, the
As a design element, building-integrated photovoltaics offer several new possibilities. The biggest impact they are having on solar design is their ability to seamlessly blend into new or pre-existing structures. Now, the first question solar consumers need to ask is whether they want their panels to blend in or stand out? While BIPV systems can be completely invisible due to their ability to blend in with (or
first question solar consumers need to ask is whether they want their panels to blend in or stand out?
replace) other construction materials, they can also be used to advertise the owner’s green credentials in subtle or not-so-subtle ways. As Solar Professional writes, “BIPV has become one of the most powerful visual manifestations of green design… Innovative architects are now adding BIPV to their design pallet and the creative process.”
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Author: Mr. Bob Solger, Specialist in the Innovative Design and Application of Solar Energy Technology
Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 16
Industry Industry Insights Insights
Documentation Management System (DMS) Solar PV plant documentation is crucial for an in-depth understanding of the design, configuration and technical details thereof. it is the asset Owner’s responsibility to provide those documents and if not available, they should, as best practice, be recreated at the asset Owner’s cost. Before assuming any maintenance and/or operational activities, it is important to understand in-depth the technical characteristics of the asset. there are two important aspects related to the management of this information: � information type and depth of detail / as-built documentation � Management and control Moreover, for quality / risk management and effective operations management a good and clear documentation of contract information, plant information, maintenance activities and asset management are needed over the lifetime of the plant. This is what is called here: � Record Control (or records management) nowadays, there are different DMSs available and described by a series of standards (ISO) that can be implemented. this is an important requirement that would allow any relevant party to trace any changes during the lifetime of the plant’s operation and follow up accordingly (e.g. when the O&M Contractor changes, or the teams change, or the plant is sold etc).
Information type and depth of detail / as-built documentation The documentation set accompanying the solar PV plant should, as a best practice, contain the documents described in the annex. the iEC 62446 standard can also be considered to cover the minimum requirements for as-built documentation. In general, for optimum service provision and as a best practice, the O&M Contractor should have access to all possible documents (from the EPC phase). the Site Operating Plan is the comprehensive document prepared and provided by the plant EPC, which lays out a complete overview of the plant location, layout, electrical diagrams, components in use and reference to their operating manuals, EH&S rules for the site and certain further topics. all detailed drawings from the EPC need to be handed over to the O&M Contractor and being stored safely for immediate access in case of PV plant issues or questions and clarifications with regards to permits and regulation. Operations is about remote monitoring, supervision and control of the PV power plant. It also involves liaising with or coordination of maintenance activities. The below sections give an overview of Operations tasks and requirements.
Management and control Regarding the document control, the following guidelines should be followed: � Documents should be stored either electronically or physically (depending on permits/ regulations) in a locationwith controlled access. an electronic copy of all documents should be available for all documents.
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� Only authorised people should be able to view or modify the documentation. a logbook of all the modifications should be kept. as a best practice, such a logbook should contain minimally the following information: � Name of person, who modified the document � Date of modification � Reason of modification and further information, e.g. link to the work orders and service activities � Versioning control should be implemented as a best practice. involved people should be able to review past versions and be able to follow through the whole history of the document.
Record control A key point is that necessary data and documentation are available for all parties in a shared environment and that alarms and maintenance can be documented in a seamless way. Critical to the Operations team is that the maintenance tasks are documented back to and linked with the alarms which might have triggered the respective maintenance activity (work order management system log). Photographs from on-site should complement the documentation (when applicable) – photo documentation. tickets (ticket interventions) should be stored electronically and made available to all partners. the asset Owner should also maintain ownership of those records for future references To learn from the past and ongoing operation and maintenance and to then be able to improve performance via for example Predictive Maintenance in the following years, it is crucial that all data is stored and that all workflows and alarms are stored to create automatic logbooks of operation and maintenance and alarms. Such data collection together with those acquired by the monitoring tool can be used for further analysis and future recommendations to the client. Such analysis and the respective outcomes should also be recorded. Last but not least, there should be a proper documentation for the curtailment periods as well as the repairing periods when the plant is fully or partly unavailable. this will all be recorded by the monitoring system to be able to measure lost energy during maintenance activities. For this, having the correct reference values at hand is crucial. For important examples of input records that should be included in the record control. As in the case of the as-built documentation, all records, data and configuration of the monitoring tool and any sort of documentation and log that might be useful for a proper service provision must be backed up and available when required. this is also important when the O&M Contractor changes. SolarPower Europe, O&M Best Practices Guidelines Version 2.0
Solar Solar SolarQuarter Quarter Quarter•••January January January2019 2019 2019 17 17
Cover Story
Changing Times For Indian Solar Asset Management Industry:
Outlook 2019 Mr. Sunil Rathi, Director
one of the largest contributors towards solar industry becoming an important part of
Waaree Energies
India Inc.
During the last few years, India has taken several major steps to reduce its dependence on conventional sources of energy, resulting in the emergence of solar power as a clear winner. This transition becomes even more important as we move closer to
However, it is quite evident that the industry is still facing a few challenges, which are preventing it from realising its full potential. One of the prime examples is the implementation of Safeguard Duty, which is only applicable on select countries like China and Taiwan. As a result, imports are now redirected from Thailand, Vietnam, and other neighbouring countries. This loophole results in an influx of low quality products
2022, with its ambitious target of generating 100 GW of power
at unsustainable prices, specifically what Safeguard Duty was brought in to combat.
through solar energy. Growing concerns about climate change
The lack of supporting anti-dumping policies also leaves very little scope for domestic
and the drastic depletion of fossil fuels have also contributed to these conversations
manufacturers to innovate, and redirect their focus to increasing their capacity.
becoming far more urgent, and multiple nations coming together to find substitutes to
As we enter the New Year, the support of the Government has now become extremely
conventional sources of energy.
crucial. The domestic manufacturing sector needs favourable initiatives and schemes
As a result, we have continuously been moving towards becoming an entirely solar
that provide a platform to develop local manufacturing, and allows extensive R&D to
reliant nation, because of which, the industry has seen a substantially augmented
bring in innovative technologies. Rooftop and floating are two segments that we foresee
growth. The transition to solar power becomes even more pertinent as the achievement
being among the biggest contributors to the segment’s growth. In addition to that, utility
of the renewable energy targets is dependent on the success of the solar revolution in
scale energy storage is also expected to change the solar landscape in India completely.
the country. Out of the 227 GW target set for renewable energy, solar power is expected
It would make solar power – both generated on-grid and off-grid – more accessible, and
to contribute more than 50% towards achieving the same. And while cynics have voiced
is expected to make it the preferred choice in answering India’s energy needs.
their disagreement, completion of the targets is not impossible. Currently, India is among
The increased focus on accepting the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certification as
the 10 largest solar energy generating nations in the world, and by 2035, it is expected
a selection criterion by lenders is testament to the industry’s sentiments in developing
to possess 8% of the global solar capacity. As reported by Mercom, the country recently
solar modules based on the compliance towards norms related to raw materials. In fact,
had an installed solar PV capacity of 25 GW, which is a significant increase from the 17.05
it becomes especially important as it helps control quality at all stages of manufacturers,
GW installed by December 2017. The increased support from the Government has been
while also allowing manufacturers to provide successful ROI to investors.
Mr. Sushain Sharma, Business Head – India
strategies. Response Time Guarantees are making their way along with Performance
Also Energy
Ratio guarantees for O&M contracts. The Big Data that we have been collecting over
India has surpassed 25GW of PV assets with the bulk of them coming up in the last 2 years. Both rooftop and Utility segment have taken tremendous strides in adopting the best practices for the management/maintenance of these assets eg adopting drone
the years has become crucial due to the applicability of this data towards pointing out plant performance trends going down to the string level. Every aspect of the plantdevice performance is being used to determine KPIs and SLAs – reaction times, resolution times, faster and more accurate diagnostics. This is enabling the optimization of cost of
surveys for infrared hotspot identification, waterless cleaning
intervention, and asset management as a whole. With greater adoption of a data driven
systems for panels, etc. One of the key impacts of the price
O&M response, this is expected to build into organizational approaches to selecting assets
pressure on O&M budgets, is the increased data-driven approach to asset management
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with the least LCOE instead of just attacking the upfront costs.
Solar Solar Quarter Quarter ••January January 2019 2019 18
Cover Story Mr. Idrish Khan, CTO (Chief Technical Officer) Ginlong (Solis) Technologies Co., Ltd. Asset management will be going to play key role for maintain the solar plant performance. Based on the current market situation there are more and more solar plant are coming operation, and we have seen since 2016 on-word there is increment in roof top installation, distributed solar system. So now the very important question come in role how the plant performance should be maintain. There various method and technology we adopt to do the analysis, and asset management company adobe the preventive measure to carry the maintenance, where are many component involve in a solar system, such as (PV module, Cable trays, Combiner box, inverter, AC combiner box, interconnections) so in a the solar system major important role handle by solar inverter which convert available power in to compatible AC power which can be used, the solar string inverter required very less maintenance activity compare to other component used in solar plant, but solar inverter should have facilities to allow O&M team to provide real time information, so choosing the inverter which have all in-built function to handle external variation, and to protect the hardware and at the
Mr. Ayush Mahajan, CEO PV Diagnostics Solar PV installations have been growing at an unprecedented rate in India, with the cumulative capacity already being more than 20GW. However, this rapid scaling, coupled with ever falling tariffs and intense competition may be resulting in compromised quality. After studying more than 500 MW of assets in the last year, we have found that most assets have module level degradations
same time recording of such variation should also need to happen and should be available to see or come in notice by O&M team to take necessary actions. We at Ginlong technology is focus to-word continuous development of product considering the market requirement, so to provide easy of installation and quick access to technical person in case of troubleshooting, all solis inverter are integrated with LCD display and with function key to access the inverter parameter to find the right information’s and at the same time Ginlong provide real time remote monitoring over cloud, and also available on mobile APP, for android & IOS platform where the alert has been send where plant owner can pass the information to address the fault to minimize the generation time and revenue loss. For asset management solar plant data collection and abilities are the key thing for them to do proper planning and necessary measures, the string inverter with multi Mppt function can provide the data to decide the frequency of PV module cleaning, the O&M team can monitor the PV voltage and current to understand which PV array are not performing and same information can be seen on inverter display and on monitoring cloud In sort for asset management selection for right inverter technology will play vital role to get better performance, better yield, and most important revenue for faster ROI.
High degradations in the older assets change the way we should look at asset management going forward. With the growing integration of information technology with the solar industry, asset management in the future will follow a more data-driven approach. While the old school asset management ensures the management of inventory, cleaning, landscaping, security, and SCADA monitoring, the next generation asset management has to follow a more predictive and preventive approach towards maintaining the solar assets. The spread of string-level monitoring is a step closer in this direction. Analytics can be performed on the string level monitoring data to identify irregular patterns and predict
much higher than the expected degradations claimed by the manufacturers. From a set
failures to some extent. However, to ensure that the potential risks and damages in the
10,000 modules selected in plants across different regions and age, we found that nearly
plant are proactively identified, the asset management companies should get the modules,
~30% modules had cracks, ~25% modules were suffering from PID and ~10% modules
inverters, transformers tested annually or biannually. Presence of equipment such as
had soldering defects. The nature of defects suggests that quality had been compromised
portable EL camera, thermal drones, and accurate IV tracers and power analyzers have
at various stages throughout the building of the solar asset - procurement of modules,
made the onsite testing affordable and scalable for large assets. Getting these tests done
transportation, installation, design, and maintenance.
at different stages also helps in better root cause analysis and establishing accountability.
Mr. Eric Daniel, VP Sales QOS Energy Harness the intelligence of your renewable data to increase production and reduce downtime of your solar assets According to a study conducted by Massachusetts Institute of Technology, companies that use data-driven decisionmaking are 5% more productive and profitable than their competitors. Can we apply the results of this study to renewable operations & maintenance? Solar asset are nowadays subject to a true data deluge. Thousands of raw data is today gathered each second from each solar plant in India. Operations teams make decisions
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based on data that they receive from monitoring providers, SCADA systems, dataloggers, inverters, satellite irradiation data, weather forecast services, and other sources. Making sense of this large volume of raw data is a tremendous challenge, but in the same time, holds to key to ensure maximum power production and reduce downtimes for thousands of renewable assets in the country on the long-term. Solar asset operators and owners now demand more from analytical toolsets than simply evaluating the current operational status of their renewable portfolios via real-time and historical benchmarks. They are now able to extract significant operational insights and increased asset value by leveraging cloud computing and data science. I will share my views and experience during RE Asset India about key success factors to implement a successful renewable operations center with a focus on energy forecasting and machine learning case studies for Indian market.
Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 19
Industry Industry Insights Insights
Renewable Electricity Sector Outlook: 2019-20
Introduction In a world marked by turbulent markets and a China in decline, India remains a shining beacon. India, currently the world’s sixth-largest economy in GDP term, has consistently been at the forefront of surging development. India’s GDP is forecast to grow 7.2%, up from 6.7% last year, according to data published by Central Statistics Office. India has steadily been amongst the fastest growing economies in the world, with its economy set to reach $5 trillion by 2025. India has showcased some impressive statistics in terms of its electricity sector – India’s energy deficit has been nearly eliminated, with Indian turning a net-exporter of electricity. It is understood that 16 states have achieved 100% household electrification. The Ministry of Renewable Energy has stated that India globally ranks 5th in terms of overall installed renewable energy capacity (and 4th for wind power); and as of 2018, India was ranked 4th
2022. This also dovetails comfortably into the projected surge in demand for electricity in India – the International Energy Agency projects that electricity demand in India will almost triple between 2018 and 2040. The Central Electricity Authority has estimated the electricity consumption on all-India basis in 2021-22 at 1300 BU, and the all-India electrical energy requirement in 2021-22 at 1566 BU, and the peak electricity demand at 226 GW. The mainstreaming of electric vehicles is also expected to significantly contribute to rising energy demand. However, it is important that adequate steps are taken to manage the load curve and it is expected that 2019 will see renewed interest and development in load curve management (besides demand management).
Positive Steps Efforts are underway to address bottlenecks in the electricity industry as well as foster
in the Renewable energy country attractiveness index.
growth – particularly with respect to easing aggregation of land, ensuring surety of power
Some Headwinds
electric vehicles market, and creating a facilitative framework for the domestic industry.
While there have been impressive gains in the sector, there have also been some worrying trends – the distribution sector has yet to emerge from the shadows of sustained financial woes, resulting in pervasive poor performance on the part of distribution utilities. Policy uncertainty and unpredictability is hampering investor sentiments. This is compounded by the relative nascency of India’s domestic renewable energy manufacturing capabilities being some of them. The renewable energy sector, has, in recent years, been riding a wave of positive investor sentiment and the promise of high demand. However, in recent months, the sector has seen a significant slow-down, with planned auctions being deferred, delayed or cancelled. This is resulting in capacity addition falling short of targets. The industry has been dogged by issues such as delays in obtainment of land, evacuation constraints, reluctance on the part of discoms to sign PPAs at higher tariffs, and persistently sub-par RPO-compliance. More recently, the industry has been caught between the cost-pressures resulting from market-driven lower tariffs and an increase in the cost of inputs owing to the duty on imported solar modules. The thermal energy sector has also been facing significant headwinds in recent years. Large capacities of private sector projects are stuck due to non-availability of coal, financial problems faced by promoters, delays in land acquisitions, uncertainty of demand, and the additional burdens of technological upgradation. This is leading to a number of projects being ‘stranded’ and going into liquidation.
Ambitious Targets -Rising Demand Government of India has set an ambitious target of achieving 175 GW of installed renewable energy capacity by 2022. Of this, 100 GW is proposed to be solar energy, 60 GW from wind energy, 10 GW from bio-power, and 5 GW from small hydro-power. As of October 31, 2018, the installed capacity of renewable energy in India stood at approximately 73 GW, which means that 102 GW has to be installed and commissioned to meet the target of
supply, reforming the distribution sector, reducing transmission losses, boosting the Also, on the anvil is the proposed set of wide-ranging amendments to the Electricity Act, 2003. The amendments contemplate, amongst other things: ÂÂ Penalties for contravening power purchase agreements (which could prove to be an effective deterrent to errant discoms); ÂÂ Separation of carriage and content (which may provide effective in providing more choice to consumers); ÂÂ Provision of subsidies through direct-benefit transfer (which might potentially see tariffrationalisation for traditionally high-paying consumers); ÂÂ A slew of promising measures targeted at the renewable energy sector – a separate renewable policy, imposition of a renewable generation obligation, penalties for noncompliance with RPOs and a defined trajectory for RPOs. When and in what form these amendments will see the light of day is debatable, but they nevertheless hold out the possibility for a broad-scale second generation of reforms for the industry. Alongside have been broader reforms that have improved and promise to improve India’s business environment – the new insolvency regime, designation of special courts for commercial matters, amendments to the arbitration laws, steps to ease inflows of FDI, and, more recently, reforms to the types of contractual relief available under law. Indeed, these efforts have seen India leap 23 places to rank 77 out of 190 countries in the latest Ease of Doing Business rankings published by the World Bank.
Focus: Sustainability In the ultimate analysis, there is an increasing need for India to take a holistic approach to the energy sector. Policy and market growth will be driven by due focus on the four energy pillars – energy access, energy efficiency, energy sustainability and energy security – to ensure a stable and sustainable energy future for India.
Author: Vishnu Sudarsan, Partner & Kartikeya G.S., Senior Associate, J. Sagar Associates (JSA). Views expressed are personal.
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Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 20
Industry Insights Product Feature
Solar PV Plant Data Collection By EagleSun SCADA With several Gigawatts of PV (PhotoVoltaic) installations, huge amount of time series data from Solar PV plants such as meteorological data, string level measurements, transmission
This received data will be processed and pushed to Cloud server through a secured protocol using GPRS
loss & generations data are collected. Such lengthy time series data from solar PV plants
technology. We can optionally route the collected data
are no doubt highly multi-dimensional and challenging to process, but the bigger problem
to a Local SCADA system as well.
is getting clean data from various sensors in this case Combiner boxes, Inverters, MFMs
2. Wired SCADA: In this method, all the devices which
(Multi-Functional Meters) & WMS (Weather Monitoring Station). That’s where Majority of
are to be monitored are connected through cables
the existing SCADA (Solar Control And Data Acquisition) systems are failing!
(OFC/Ethernet) till the Main Control Room and the
Internet of Things (IoT) provides a technological platform to achieve this with its ability
plant data can be monitored in control room PC.
to gather data from Anything or Everything connected over network. Emergence of this
The APIC -intelligent datalogger, installed in MCR
technology will prove to be a significant differentiator in this race by providing access to
which collects, process and sends to cloud server
the plant remotely, thus increase the productivity and maximize Return of Investment.
through a secured protocol using GPRS technology.
APIC (Avi on Premise IoT Controller) series Intelligent Datalogger, in-house built & uses
3. Third party SCADA Integration:
real-time analytics and artificial intelligence to enhance operational performance of
It can be achieved in three ways:
solar power plants. Most solar PV plants are in remote locations and may have a very
1) Push Method: In this method, Avi Solar will setup
low bandwidth internet connectivity. Existing sensors or specialized sensors placed at
FTP server and provide login credentials to Third Party SCADA vendor. The Third-Party
critical points in Solar plants, monitors parameters including temperature, DC power, AC
SCADA vendor should PUSH plants data to FTP server in near Realtime. The format of
power, Voltage, Current, Faults etc. Sensors which are part of a SCADA system collects,
the Data should either in CSV (Comma Separated Value) or JSON (Java Script Object
consolidates & logs all the data of a Plant. Hence, to ensure real time monitoring of the
Notation) format. This data will be read and stored in our cloud servers.
plant, critical data is packetized using special algorithms and pushed to a cloud server.
2) Pull Method /API: We will call third party Scada APIs for the extraction of data for
Cloud Server gives the flexibility of preserving/Maintaining huge volume, velocity of
the particular plant (Avi Solar will PULL Data by making calls to Third-Party REST
plant’s historical data. The data is also stored at local control room and can be retrieved
(Representational state transfer) API. The Third-party SCADA vendor should provide
in case of communication failure with Cloud Server, thus ensuring reliable and accurate data availability.
REST API’s credentials to Avi Solar for pulling data. 3) Scripting: In this method using the client credentials we can run the software on client’s
Data Collection at the solar plant can be achieved by three ways by deploying APIC series
computer (Scripting) and extract the data/download the data automatically every 5
Intelligent Datalogger/ Smart Sensors.
min intervals from the existing Web Based SCADA software.”
1. Wireless Remote monitoring SCADA: Here the data from the inverters (Central/string),
APIC series has currently 3+ Intelligent Datalogger/Smart Sensor
MFMs, VCBs(Voltage Circuit Breaker) or any other device at plant with Modbus RTU/TCP
Different Variants: -
interface can be collected by APIC-RTU/TCP (Remoter Termination Unit / Transmission
● APIC-RTU : For Wired Modbus RTU devices.
Control Protocol). Concentrator unit (APIC-RF) which is located at MCR which sends request & collects data from RF slaves [ASN] installed at field on various devices (Eg: String Combiner boxes).
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● APIC-TCP : For Single/Multiple TCP devices. ● APIC-RF
: Wireless solution, irrespective of devices.
● ASN
: For Modbus RTU wireless solution
Solar Solar Quarter Quarter ••January January 2019 2019 21
Message
D
ear Friends and Partners,
At a time when we turn the page on one year and look ahead to the future, I would
While emission reduction is the priority, all of us in the industry should also stay
like to extend my New Year greetings to all employees of the company and our
mindful of the social contribution solar makes. Remote regions become connected,
partners who have supported LONGi. We achieved good results in 2018. Today,
impoverished communities can make new strides with an electrified economy and
despite challenges at home and abroad, LONGi is matching the global growth of
precious vegetation can remain in the ground in the Sahara as the sun offers a
solar. In addition, the company is doing so in a financially sustainable fashion, with
cleaner, cheaper alternative to firewood stoves and kerosene lamps.
a recent BNEF report ranking us as the most secure Chinese solar manufacturer in the industry. Our ongoing commitment to research and development has continued to yield exceptional results in 2018, with cell efficiency records tumbling this year. The
These shared achievements are greater than the sum of their individual parts. It is for this reason that LONGi considers its leading role to mean that we have responsibility to serve as a leader for the industry. We engage with both mainstream and industry media to spread this message.
potential for Mono PERC solar cells is unrivalled, and our successes in markets
It is why we participate in PV public service program actively. Applying PV to
around the world are testament to the fact that the global market is moving
poverty alleviation is a great initiative in China and LONGi advocates using the
towards Mono technology.
most advanced PV products in this program to help the less fortunate rise from
Despite some of the barriers that we have all recently faced, hurdles to success are being removed faster than they are being created. Europe is witnessing a new era of post-subsidy deployment. Southeast Asia is recognizing the value of PV power plants and deploying utilities PV at scale. Regulatory, economic and technology developments are aligning in solar’s favor, from America to Australia. The global threat of climate change was under the spotlight once more in December, as governments gathered in Poland for the UN climate talks and sought consensus on the best path forward. Emission reduction is the priority now, regardless of the status of political negotiations. Decarbonization is key and, from reservoirs to rooftops at all latitudes, LONGi modules are making their own positive contribution.
their circumstances. Beyond that, we extend our work in public welfare projects. Through gifts of solar, books and other vital supplies for schools, we are offering the next generation - a solar generation - every advantage we can. With all this in mind, we sincerely hope all who agree with the philosophy of our company will continue to work with us in 2019. Together we can increase the momentum achieved by the industry thus far in maximizing the global impact of solar. I wish each and every one of you happiness, good fortune and success in the New Year. My warmest personal regards,
We believe that solar with storage will soon be the cheapest source of energy and
Li. Wenxue
we are trying to make our dream “Solar for Solar” come true.
President, Longi Solar
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22 Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 22
Product Feature
The company is expanding its dealership network to reach the farthest corners of the country Sanelite Solar, a green initiative from Sanelite Group, is a pivotal company in the area of
innovating their offerings. From smart PV solutions
renewable energy providing end-to-end solar PV solutions from manufacturing solar PV
to Passivated Emitter Rear Cell (PERC) modules, these
modules to solar EPC installations. The company carries with it many years of experience
new products provide more options for end users to
in solar industry and a strong financial background from Sanelite Group.
optimize their solar PV systems and expedite return
Sanelite Solar is a leading manufacturer of high-quality PV modules of capacity 40Wp to
on investment.
335Wp. The state-of-the art production line is carefully designed ultra-modern line with
Recent development in the evolution of PV
high efficiency automatic laminator and auto-tabber & stringer machines. The company
technology has been the introduction of PV modules
also offers end-to-end solar EPC solutions, grid-connected solar PV systems, off-grid solar
with half-cut cell. These innovative new options for
PV systems, solar power plants, rooftop solar PV systems as well as integrated PV systems.
solar PV systems have the potential to further boost
Being a channel partner of GEDA and MNRE and with growing market of domestic
power output and reduce overall costs. We actually
solar rooftop in the state of Gujarat, the company channelized the efforts through one-of-its-kind franchisee network. Over past 2 years, Sanelite has grown its franchisee network in Gujarat to more than 25 in numbers, and it’s still growing. In a similar way, for channelizing the sale of PV modules and other products, the company is expanding its dealership network to reach the farthest corners of the country. The dealer network shall be utilized for the sale of some innovative products like Solar DIY kits for Solar Rooftops and Solar Pumps in addition to our high-efficiency PV modules.
Featured Product: Half-cut Cell PV Modules
tested similar product earlier last year for some of our solar pump installations where there was a need for higher voltage, and it had received a very good response.
Technology Specifications Half-Cut Cell Modules have a fresh layout with better performance under the sun and when there is no or little sun. These modules are made from half-cut cells increase the modules efficiency by reducing resistance through the module, exposing more cell area to sunlight and increasing the amount of light absorbed.
In a technological advancement, the company has recently launched the Half-Cut Cell
Technology Advancements
PV Modules. Exceeding all trade standards and certifications, our Hal-Cut Cell panels
A solar cell when cut in half will produce half as much current and one fourth as much
square measure out there in white (higher power) and all-black (sleeker aesthetic) PV back
resistance. This lower resistance reduces electrical losses and improves panel efficiency.
sheet variants. It comes with a standard quality & 25-years of warranty, which guarantees
The decreased electrical losses can increase the output of a panel by up to 3% over what
maximum performance throughout the lifetime of the PV system. Features of Our Half-Cut
it would be with full size cells.
Cell Modules are: � Increased Efficiency with reduced electrical losses
Targeted/ Benefitted Customer Segment
� Exceptional performance under shadows and low-light conditions
The innovation offers a lot to its beneficiaries. With a little increase in cost, this product can
� Superior aesthetics and hot-spots free structure with automated stringing
save the day for any EPC player. Especially for the projects where shadows are unavoidable
Product Introduction As demand for PV products continue to flow, solar module manufacturers have continued
or where there are space constraints, introducing these modules can help increase overall efficiency of the plant. In fact it can also help overcome glitches in real-time project execution for normal projects.
Dealershi p Inquiry +91-7226995509/10
PV MODULES SKY Series 60 cells 250W -265W 16.30% (Efficiency)
SPACE Series 72 cells 300W-330W 16.65% (Efficiency)
Sanelite Solar is a preferred manufacturer of high-quality PV modules ranging from 40Wp to 330Wp.The produccon line is carefully designed ultra-modern line with high efficiency automaac laminator and auto-tabber & stringer machines.The PV modules are engineers with highest grade raw material to get oppmum performance and high efficiency.The end produccon is an aestheecally superior absorber of sunlight - the Sanelite Solar PV Modules.
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Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 23
Product Feature
Lightening Arrestor (La) Or Surge Protection Device (Spd): What Is Of Utmost Necessity For A Solar Plant? A solar PV plant has lot of metallic components i.e. the frames of module (generally made
As evident from above, we could conclude that both LA and SPD’s have a separate role to
of aluminum), the understructure (made of aluminum or hot dipped galvanized iron) which
play in the power plant. Thus none of the above protective equipment should be ignored
are exposed to the open atmosphere. Nowadays with the solar power plants being scaled
while installing the power plant. Additionally in order to ensure the plant runs smoothly for
from few MW’s to around 3~5 GW (Figure 1) and with requirement of adequate substations
25 years, it becomes necessary that it is fitted with all the necessary protective equipment’s.
and transmission lines in/around the plant, the actual amount of metal exposed to the
Waaree has an experience of executing more than 500+ MW EPC projects. We ensure to
atmosphere is immense. Areas in or around such high metal density are highly susceptible
follow all the safety standards and necessary guidelines in order to erect a power plant. An
to lightning strikes. While few EPC’s/ installers take appropriate considerations and give
expertise like such enables end customer to be assured that their plant would be up and
necessary protection required in the power plant, we have seen many plants (usually small
running for 25 years.
in size) where there are no protection for lightening at all. Any lightning strike on such
Let us all pledge to make solar energy the primary source of energy in the near future.
plants would result in (almost) complete destruction of solar modules (Figure 2 left). This lightning strike may also (in few cases) cause fire outrage leading to total devastation of
Figure 1: A typical solar power plant
solar power plant (Figure 2 right). With such effects, adequate protection from lightening is of utmost importance. This blog hence aims to educate its readers on two such important protection devices i.e. Lightening Arrestor (LA) and Surge Protection Device (SPD). It would also inform you on what or which of the protection device is important for your solar power plant. A lightning strike can be defined as an electrical discharge from atmosphere to an object on earth. As explained above, due to heavy metallic parts around solar plant, it becomes a critical spot for lightning strike. While such lightening is not inevitable, its effects can be averted by using lightening arrestor (LA). LA as the name suggests arrests or captures the lightening and transfers the discharge to the earth via a conductor cable (Figure 3). In
(Source: Google images)
order to make the earth more conducting, a low resistant ground enhancement material
Figure 2: Solar module (left) and power plant (right) destroyed due to lightening
(GEM) may be added while digging the hole (2 to 3 meter) for grounding. While the other parts of the system are more or less standard, LA comes in variety of types and techniques. The standard LA used in a solar power plant is more or less dependent on size of solar power plant. For a ground mounted and/or a utility scale power plant an early streamer emission LA is used. During a stormy weather, the ambient electric field of the atmosphere rises from 600V (when normal) to 10-20 kV/m. Under such conditions the internal circuit of the LA activates and starts generating early pulses (known as upward leader). This upward leader of LA is earlier (in time) compared to other (natural) upward leaders arising in its vicinity. From the fundamental laws we know that electricity tries finding least resistance path. Thus the tip of lightning strike (also known as downward leader) meets the upward leader and the entire lightening is grounded via this LA. It is due to this (early) upward
(Source: Google images)
Figure 3: A typical arrangement of LA on house
leader that the structure in the vicinity of this LA survives the lightning strike (Figure 4). The advantage of using such system is that given a certain height and required level of protection, it can protect items in radius from 19 meters to as much as 120 meters. For a solar PV plant, this means that the lightening rod can be quiet far away from the power plant but still protect the plant. Additionally the shadow effect of such LA can be easily avoided. For a rooftop scale power plant a simple rod like structure may be installed which may a tapered/ spherical tip. They may not be able to form the upward leader before the strike, but their upward leader is usually the first and nearest that the lightning would come in contact in case of a strike. Usually both rooftop and utility scale power plant two grounding pits associated with a single LA. This is to ensure that the entire strike is grounded from either of/both the pit(s). The area of protection of LA from lightening can be determined by a technique known as rolling sphere method. In this method, based on the class of protection and height of the
(Source: Google images)
LA a sphere with an imaginary radius r is drawn on/around the LA (Figure 5). This sphere is imaginarily rolled over the entire vicinity. The area’s where the sphere cannot touch upon
Figure 4: Working principal of early streamer emission LA
is deemed to safe. The area where the sphere touches is unsafe and requires LA around it or either the height/class of the existing LA should be enhanced. With a background on lightning, let us now come to second part of the blog i.e. surge protection device (SPD). A surge may be defined as an exposure of an instrument to over voltage/ current/ power which may damage an instrument. With reference to PV plant, a surge may be a result of (mostly) an indirect lightning strike around the vicinity of the plant. This strike may cause surges in the areas around the spot where it was grounded. This sudden surges may be in thousands of volts and/or hundreds of amperes which can significantly damage to the solar module. Additionally the electromagnetic radiation associated with such grounded strike may affect the current carrying cables, communication cables, inverters, etc. This is where SPD comes into picture. A SPD (as shown below in Figure 6) is used to limit the over voltage and surge currents or both. They are generally connected in parallel to the system they are intended to protect. In case of surge, the SPD acts as a switch that turns off the normal operation of system. This forces
(source: Earlystreameremission)
the surge to flow through the SPD which is then grounded (via the green grounding wire as seen in figure below). The SPD’s generally available in market may be classified based on its classes and types i.e. type 1, type 2, type 3 and so on. The SPD used particularly in solar power plant is of type 2. This type of SPD is specifically to ground any surge arising from indirect lightning. These SPD’s are installed on both DC and AC sides in the solar
Mr. Sunil Rathi Director- Sales and Marketing Waaree Energies Ltd.
power plant.
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Solar Solar Quarter Quarter •• January January 2019 2019 24
Industry Industry Insights Insights
Case study: Successfully Managing Financial Risk Project description As module prices have plummeted in solar projects, the non-module costs have assumed an ever rising slice of the overall project cost. Now, the cost of capital is the biggest cost of all: some 60-70% of cash flows are used for capital servicing. Investor returns depend in part on the amount of debt used to finance the plant – debt financing increases risks for equity investors. A recent study by Grant Thornton showed that at German renewables projects in 2017, levered discount rates (a proxy for the cost of capital) were about 30% higher than unlevered ones for solar PV, onshore and offshore wind projects. As a result, securing the best financing can have a huge impact on returns: investors will want to minimize these costs as far as possible.
Approach taken Securing the best financing deal will depend on accurate record-keeping, attention to monitoring software and performance management from day one. In other words, this is a task that depends on sound asset management. When considering the refinancing of a renewable energy asset, a lender will shine a light on every dark corner of a project. Asset managers therefore need to be preparing for this moment years ahead: to consider what software systems are needed, and what first-class preventative maintenance the O&M should provide. All energy production data and warrantees must be centrally managed, to provide O&M records of how the plant has been maintained. Assets can only be refinanced if they are proven to be of higherquality than what was expected at the onset of the project, often several years before.
O&M and components – stabilizing cash flows, sharing risk, and saving time and money on replacements Aquila Capital’s management optimization approach also extends to O&M expenses. For example, Aquila Capital agreed with an O&M provider to share weather-related risks: the provider takes a part of the upside in exchange for covering part of the downside, thus enabling us to offer a more stable cash flow for the overall project as well as an enhanced relationship with the O&M operator. Aquila Capital’s market intelligence and skills have also allowed us to reduce costs when it comes to the purchasing or substituting of components. Aquila Capital has been able to realize greater revenues in part because the market for components is relatively thin and illiquid. Aquila Capital turned this to an advantage because we understand better than others how to time our purchasing commitments, for example by obtaining a “fast track” for replacements. Given its size and collective experience as an asset manager, Aquila Capital also knows how to sign more attractive bilateral contracts than would be achievable by a smaller, less expert, less diversified player. 2018 Aquila Capital
Solutions achieved Aquila Capital’s experience shows that as a result of refinancing, we can increase investor returns materially. Asset insurance and O&M expenses are two key areas where Aquila Capital can consistently deliver rate of return improvements. In this project the reduction of costs are expected to total up to EUR 4.5 million over the lifetime of the asset.
Insurance brokering – exploiting the portfolio effect Aquila Capital approaches its insurance tenders in the same way as it analyses asset operations: it exploits the greater reliability of a portfolio and the benefits of scale to negotiate more advantageous terms. Besides resulting in an overall reduction of insurance premiums, this approach has yielded enhancements in insurance conditions for Aquila Capital’s portfolio of assets, for example a noclaims bonus, reductions in the retention of both total amounts and days and reductions in the overall administrative costs with regards to insurance management. All in all, inviting insurance bids for a pooled portfolio of assets has resulted in cost savings of around 20% on premiums.
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Solar Solar Quarter Quarter ••January January 2019 2019 25
Technology News
S
M
eawater turns into freshwater through solar energy: A new low-cost technology
According to FAO estimates, by 2025 nearly 2 billion people may not have enough drinking water to satisfy their daily needs. One of the possible solutions to this problem is desalination, namely treating seawater to make it drinkable. However, removing salt from seawater requires 10 to 1000 times more energy than traditional methods of freshwater supply, namely pumping water from rivers or wells. Motivated by this problem, a team of engineers from the Department of Energy of Politecnico di Torino has devised a new prototype to desalinate seawater in a sustainable and low-cost way, using solar energy more efficiently. Compared to previous solutions, the developed technology is in fact able to double the amount of water produced at given solar energy, and it may be subject to further efficiency improvement in the near future. The group of young researchers who recently published these results in the journal Nature Sustainability is composed of Eliodoro Chiavazzo, Matteo Morciano, Francesca Viglino, Matteo Fasano and Pietro Asinari (Multi-Scale Modeling Lab). The working principle of the proposed technology is very simple: “Inspired by plants, which transport water from roots to leaves by capillarity and transpiration, our floating device is able to collect seawater using a low-cost porous material, thus avoiding the use of expensive and cumbersome pumps. The collected seawater is then heated up by solar energy, which sustains the separation of salt from the evaporating water. This process can be facilitated by membranes inserted between contaminated and drinking water to avoid their mixing, similarly to some plants able to survive in marine environments (for example the mangroves),” explain Matteo Fasano and Matteo Morciano. While conventional ‘active’ desalination technologies need costly mechanical or electrical components (such as pumps and/or control systems) and require specialized technicians for installation and maintenance, the desalination approach proposed by the team at Politecnico di Torino is based on spontaneous processes occurring without the aid of ancillary machinery and can, therefore, be referred to as ‘passive’ technology. All this makes the device inherently inexpensive and simple to install and repair. The latter features are particularly attractive in coastal regions that are suffering from a chronic shortage of drinking water and are not yet reached by centralized infrastructures and investments.
ono PERC cell production to lead solar industry in 2019
Back in 2014, p-type mono PERC cell production was less than 1GW. During 2019, production is forecast to exceed 60GW as the dominant technology type deployed by the solar industry for module assembly. The dramatic growth in production has also been matched by continuous cell efficiency and module power improvements, including a new record (24.06%) in the past few days announced by LONGi Solar. This article discusses the factors that have led to the dramatic growth in p-type mono PERC production in the past few years, cell efficiency increases, and how p-type mono PERC performance will continue to set the benchmarks for new n-type entrants in China over the next 12-18 months. The topics covered in this article will also be featured in the forthcoming PV CellTech 2019 conference in Penang, Malaysia on 12-13 March 2019, in which many of the CTO’s and head-of-R&D will be presenting on company technology roadmaps for the coming years. Growth of p-mono PERC The use of rear passivation layers had originally been confined to highly advanced cell concepts such as heterojunction and interdigitated back-contact cells, with mainstream p-type cells using the established screen-printed Al-BSF method. Depositing passivation layers on p-type cells was well established in the research community however, but was not justified before based on equipment cost and the additional complexity in cell lines. Moving away from screen-printing was recognized as key in opening up the rear surface for additional benefits such as bifaciality, not to mention any industry move to wafer thicknesses being reduced to below about 120 microns. After the solar industry went into a capex downturn in 2012 (prior to which there had been strong Asian investments into p-type multi cell lines), attention focused on efficiency optimization on existing lines and removing cost. During 2012 to 2014, front pastes improved significantly, with increased bus-bar formation also driving efficiencies higher with minimal capex. Once front surface cell processing had gone through these improvement phases, it was time for the industry to focus on the rear surface, with the first evidence that rear passivation layers would quickly move to mainstream status.
P
S
erovskite solar cells will make solar panels much more efficient
A number of companies from Oxford in the UK to Redwood City California are working to commercialize new solar technology that could further increase adoption of the generation of renewable energy. Peroovskite is described by Wikipedia as follows: “Perovskite is a calcium titanium oxide mineral composed of calcium titanate (Ca Ti O3). It lends its name to the class of compounds which have the same type of crystal structure as CaTiO3 (XIIA2+VIB4+X2−3), known as the perovskite structure.Many different cations can be embedded in this structure, allowing the development of diverse engineered materials.” Wikipedia’s entry on the related solar cells is in part as follows: “A perovskite solar cell is a type of solar cell which includes a perovskite structured compound, most commonly a hybrid organic-inorganic lead or tin halide-based material, as the light-harvesting active layer.Perovskite materials such as methylammonium lead halides and all-inorganic cesium lead halide, are cheap to produce and simple to manufacture.” The efficiency of devices that use these materials has risen from just 3.8 percent in 2009 to 23.3 percent in late 2018. In silicon-based tandem cells the efficiency has reached 27.3 percent. These Perovskite solar cells are the fastest advancing solar energy technology today. They have the potential of even better efficiencies with very low production costs. Oxford PV is a startup working with Oxford University. It received $3 million from the UK government to develop the new technology. Just two days ago another company in the US, Swift Solar, raised $7 million to help bring the technology to the commercial market as shown in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The new Perovskite solar cells contain the first new technology to come along for years that can offer better efficiency in converting light to electric power at a much lower cost than existing technologies. Sam Stranks, the lead scientific adviser and a co-founder of Swift Solar said: “Perovskite has let us truly rethink what we can do with the silicon-based solar panels we see on roofs today. Another aspect that really excites me: how cheaply these can be made. These thin crystalline films are made by mixing two inexpensive readily abundant salts to make an ink that can be deposited in many different ways… This means that perovskite solar panels could cost less than half of their silicon counterparts.”
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olar, storage and smart grid tech unlock demand response potential
Selling curtailment to the grid could bring in new revenue for customers with on-site solar panels and batteries. As more homes and businesses pair solar panels with battery storage, emerging smart grid technology could help them capture — and sell — a potentially valuable grid resource. Utilities often offer to pay commercial and industrial customers to cut their electricity use when demand for power is high. These demand response programs usually aren’t open to residential customers, whose load is typically too small to affect the larger grid. In Illinois, the state’s largest utility, ComEd, runs a demand response program for business customers called the Voluntary Load Reduction program. The PJM regional transmission organization also runs a program for its jurisdiction in which businesses sign up through curtailment services providers that aggregate power loads and submit it to PJM for payments. The addition of on-site generation such as solar panels or diesel backup generators give customers more flexibility in deciding whether to participate, and adding energy storage to their on-site mix offers even more control. Smarter software and grid connections makes these systems easier to aggregate and offer as demand response resources, including smaller customers. While the potential is clear, the details are still complicated. Consultants say preparing a solar, storage or microgrid customer for demand response requires careful planning, especially if the customer is counting on the added revenue. The Business Case Demand response revenue is tough to pinpoint far into the future, said Duncan Campbell, vice president of development at Scale Microgrid Solutions. In November, Scale Microgrid and Schneider Electric announced a joint project to equip vertical farm startup Bowery Farming with a microgrid. The microgrid will combine on-site generation, including rooftop solar, a natural gas generator and a lithium-ion battery, in Bowery’s forthcoming New Jersey facility.
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Technology News
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S
reat potential for floating solar photovoltaics systems
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) researchers estimate that installing floating solar photovoltaics on the more than 24,000 human-made U.S. reservoirs could generate about 10 percent of the nation’s annual electricity production. Their findings, published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, reveal for the first time the potential for floating PV to produce electricity in the United States. While the United States was the first to demonstrate floating PV panels -- with the first installation occurring 10 years ago on pontoons on an irrigation pond in Napa Valley, California -- the idea has not received widespread national acceptance. The U.S. focus has primarily been on installing large-scale, ground-mounted solar panels, and only had seven floating PV sites as of December 2017. Floating PV sites are being deployed more overseas, however, with more than 100 sites as of the end of last year. Japan, for example, is home to 56 of the 70 largest floating PV installations. “In the United States, it’s been a niche application; where in other places, it’s really been a necessity,” said Jordan Macknick, the lead energy-water-land analyst for NREL and principal investigator of the project that produced the paper “Floating PV: Assessing the Technical Potential of Photovoltaic Systems on Man-Made Water Bodies in the Continental U.S.” “We’re expecting it to take off in the United States, especially in areas that are landconstrained and where there’s a major conflict between solar encroaching on farmland.” Macknick and his NREL co-authors, Robert Spencer, Alexandra Aznar, Adam Warren, and Matthew Reese, estimate about 2.1 million hectares of land could be saved if solar panels were installed on bodies of water instead of on the ground. The use of floating PV comes with additional benefits, including reduced water evaporation and algae growth. Spencer, lead author of the paper, added that in some cases benefits could be greater than those documented in the paper, but that the team used “strict assumptions that would give us a very conservative estimate of the total potential generation and benefits.” The NREL team also found that operating floating PV alongside hydroelectric facilities yields increased energy output and cost savings because of existing transmission infrastructure.
I
IT-Madras solar DC tech to light up villages
The remote places in Manipur, Meghalaya and Assam that are beyond the reach of electricity grids will soon to get electricity thanks to the Solar DC technology pioneered by IIT Madras. Cygni Energy Private Limited, an innovative Solar-DC solutions startup that was incubated at IIT Madras is now installing 3,026 units in villages located high up in remote corners of Manipur and another 25,000 units solar inverters and lights in the villages of Assam.
olar-Plus-Storage Beats CombinedCycle Gas in Jordan and Morocco
Solar-plus-storage is already competitive with the world’s most efficient form of gas generation in Morocco and Jordan, according to new research from Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables. Solar on its own is much cheaper than combined-cycle gas turbines (CCGTs) in both markets, states the Solar-Plus-Storage in the Middle East and Africa market opportunity assessment published this month. The fact that solar was still competitive with the most efficient gas technology after adding battery storage, which bumps up the cost by 126 percent, was “quite big news,” said Rory McCarthy, senior storage analyst for Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables. The firm’s latest figures show the levelized cost of energy for solar-plus-storage ranging between around $60 and $100 per megawatt-hour across five Middle East and African countries: Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. This puts the combination of solar and batteries on level footing today with CCGTs in Morocco, which have a fuel cost of $6.90 to $9 per million btu, and starting this year in Jordan, where the fuel cost is from $5.60 to $6.80 per mmbtu. In Egypt, for comparison, the gas price to the power sector is currently $3 per mmbtu. Wood Mackenzie predicts that by 2023, the cost premium for storage will have dropped to 85 percent, and solar’s levelized cost of energy (LCOE) will have come down, too. In South Africa, the most expensive market surveyed, Wood Mackenzie expects solar LCOEs to go from $41.70 per megawatt-hour today down to $32.90 in 2023. And in the United Arab Emirates, the lowest-cost market for solar among those surveyed, PV LCOEs are forecast to drop from $25.70 to $20 per megawatt-hour.
EXCELSIOR ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS
GOOD ENGINEERING IS ALL YOU NEED TO DEVELOP A
SOLAR POWER PLANT THAT PERFORMS WELL
THROUGHOUT ITS LIFECYCLE &
Professor Ashok Jhunjhunwala from IIT Madras who lead the research on this technology said, “We have played a major role in taking power to remote villages in Manipur, Assam, Meghalaya and Jammu and Kashmir. Solar-DC system makes the equipment much smaller in size and cost.” He further said, “It has helped us in these difficult terrains where carrying anything would
AT EES, WE ARE SO GOOD AT IT,
THAT IT ACTUALLY IS OUR MIDDLE NAME
have been difficult. Powering homes with DC power-line reduces the power-consumption and would be increasingly deployed with solar in urban and rural India homes.” The Manipur Project, taken up at a cost of Rs.11.5 crore, was funded by Manipur Renewable Energy Development Agency. The installation has been completed in 2,800 Homes. Most Beneficiaries are situated in remote, inaccessible mountainous regions of Manipur. Cygni Energy Private Limited has set the target on 100 percent electrification of rural households.
PARTNERS FOR YOUR MW & KW SOLAR PROJECTS
Cygni Energy Private Limited, a Solar-DC solution startup incubated by Rural Technology Business Incubator (RTBI) of IIT-Madras, is now set to install 3,026 units in Manipur. Another batch of 25,000 units of solar inverters and lights will also be installed in villages across Assam. “We have set our target on 100 percent electrification of rural households. Our Solar-DC inverterless product is a unique, disruptive product that is bringing about a paradigm shift in the way energy is generated and consumed,” said Venkat Rajaraman, the CEO, Cygni Energy Private Limited. With Solar-DC solution, people can use power for 8 hours to full load and close to 12-14
Design & Engineering
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info@excleng.com
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hours in reserve mode with only basic appliances like the bulb and mobile chargers.
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 27 27
Product Feature
Solis’s Expedetition To The West-Mgm Power Station Recently, MGM string power station ushered in the operational time. As everyone expected all the performance was good and the operation was efficient and reliable up to now. It is estimated to supply 430,000 KWH power for MGM hospital per year. MGM power station founded with the investment of Renew Power India, which committed to leading a change in India’s current energy portfolio by delivering cleaner and smarter energy choices and thereby reducing India’s carbon footprint, Renew Power’s mission is to play a pivotal role in meeting India’s growing energy needs in an efficient, sustainable and socially responsible manner. No doubt the biggest beneficiary of MGM power plant is MGM hospital in Mumbai. The total capacity of MGM power station is 355KW adopting 50k inverter from Ginlong Solis. Director of MGM hospital reveals to us: We were recommended by Renew Power about Solis Inverters. The best feature of Solis inverters is the multiple MPPT technology which
overcomes
constrains
of
space
availability, shadow effect and generation optimization. And Renew Power assures us that Solis inverter is reliable and efficient and running well for long time. When asked him the reason of building a power station in MGM hospital, the director of MGM hospital was blunt: As MGM is a multi-specialty hospital, there is a huge consumption of power round the clock particularly for HVAC system and various diagnosing equipments. Rising cost of the commercial electricity rates was another reason for opting for solar plant. Subsidy from the Central Government assistance program came as an icing on the cake. This made the plant more viable and they are expecting to have a payback in 5-6 years with decent ROI. According to information, MGM hospital is a part of Mahatma Gandhi Mission Trust which has sustainability and affordability as one of the core values. Going solar is one of the ways to adhere the laid foundation. More over fossil fuel is one of the leading causes of global warming, by installing solar we can reduce our carbon footprint. It also has a positive impact towards our corporate social responsibility by opting for cleaner fuel, pollution free technology and over all a visible tangible asset for environmental protection endorsed by stakeholders. Indeed, after subsidies for the PV market released by India’s central government, Companies are increasingly investing in photovoltaic power stations in India. Ginlong Solis, one of these companies in particular. All projects of Ginlong Solis are commissioned in line with the highest quality standards and engineering capabilities. Ginlong Solis is proud to be a responsible organization that is committed to supporting the communities in which we live and work. We are at a turning point where transformational use of natural resources of energy will define our future.
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Solar Solar Quarter Quarter •• January January 2019 2019 28
Company Feature
Technological Innovation Is Goodwe’s Core Competence
EES’s Technical Services can be exclusively tailor-made to provide an end-to-end solution We, at Excelsior Engineering Solutions having serviced over 100 solar projects, exceeding 1500 MW worth of project capacity across 15 states of India alongside leading IPPs, EPCs and System Integrators, have identified a massive engineering void that is critical to ensure functional integrity of solar power plants throughout their operational lifespan. Our core services like Design & Engineering, Plant Audit, Project Management Consultancy, Owner`s Engineering and 3rd Party Review have been developed around the ethos of providing technical services to other businesses in the solar sector.
GoodWe is a globally leading enterprise, strategically focusing on R&D and the manufacture of string solar inverters, ranging widely from 0.7kW to 80kW. With its 15GW capacity as of 2019, GoodWe solar inverters have been widely selected for residential, commercial & industrial solar rooftops and MWs scale grid connected onground systems, and energy storage systems. Technological innovation is GoodWe’s core competence, with the company spending 6% of the total revenue investing in R&D yearly, keeping a successive R&D investment at an annual growth rate of 10%. With an in-house R&D team of 200 employees and three global research centres, GoodWe can offer a comprehensive portfolio of products and solutions, ensuring performance and quality go hand-in-hand across the entire range. GoodWe’s philosophy has always been to create win-win partnerships by identifying and integrating the most advanced components and techniques available while offering an unparalleled after-sales service. In order to respond to the needs of Indian customers as swiftly as possible, GoodWe established its bonded warehouses and after-sales warehouses both in Mumbai. A professional team of 11 authorized engineers have been trained to perform on-site inspections, testing and debugging, or providing repair and replacement if necessary. With even more joining GoodWe in 2019, these engineers will use the latest techniques to maximize inverter performance while minimizing production or process downtime. GoodWe’s Mumbai service support office is located at 1202 G-Square Business Park, Sector 30A, Opp. Sanpada Railway Stn., Vashi, Navi Mumbai 400703.
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The biggest drawback of developing solar PV power plants is that engineering shortcomings never reveal itself until overall generation is significantly impacted. We understand the difficulty new entrants in the industry face in terms of providing comprehensive engineering solutions hence we rigorously work alongside with the industry to ensure that the best practices are adhered to while implementing any solar project. Our clients can directly choose the (nine) different services that we offer or our services can be exclusively tailor-made to provide an end-to-end solution where it addresses the entire detailed design, PVSyst or Helioscope simulation, site supervision, module mounting structure design or optimization, STAAD Pro simulation, vendor evaluation, review of ancillary equipment, BOM, 3rd party vetting of documents as well as review of contracts and PPAs. We have also been appointed for undertaking Plant Audits of operational plants where the generation is not as expected and to assess the quality of an asset for purchase or sale. With the work outsourced to us, our engineers simply start functioning as your in-house engineering team. This allows the EPC companies and system integrators to focus and dedicate their internal resources to their sales, marketing and site execution work without having to invest in the engineering team or in procuring multiple software and tools, while we handle the engineering jugglery. With our team of experienced engineers working with several solar projects of a very diverse portfolio, it keeps us updated with the industry’s latest innovations and enables us to have a holistic approach while delivering the best possible solution for our clients to set up a large-scale ground mount or rooftop project. More than just reducing the overall cost of the system, the true sense of utilizing EES as a technical expert for your project lies in ensuring that each rupee invested in a project is justified to ensure building a solar project that will outlive its design criteria. Connect with us to know on how our technical services can benefit your organization in putting up a quality solar power plant.
Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 29
Industry Industry Insights Insights
Paying It Forwards: How Investing In Experience From European Asset Managers Can Earn Over The Longer Term - Lessons Learned From The European Solar Sector
The market in India is growing rapidly and, in its nature, is evolving much faster than the
Additional operational pressures include the introduction of Forecasting, Scheduling
UK. The pace is exciting and India will inevitably become a key nation in the global solar
and Imbalance Handling with financial deviation penalties, CEIG annual site inspections
sector. Regrettably, as with the adoption of any new technology, we are seeing the same
and annual meter calibrations. All of these carry costs which, as we have also seen,
development and construction related problems that were also experienced in Spain, Italy
are not routinely captured in financial models during development. Operational costs
and the UK years before. Issues such as module defects, poor DC cabling, inappropriate
creep upwards when there is imperfect market information and the financial model is
drainage, all of which can result in a portfolio of sub-optimum assets.
wrong. Some projects are also experiencing significant cashflow issues with late revenue
For solar projects in India to become a high quality asset class, swift improvements in knowledge transfer are imperative to avoid the recurrence of common, chronic and
payments due by TRANSCO’s delayed for as much as 5-6 months. Depending on the Debt/ Equity model, this could mean serious issues for loan cover or dividend payments. For all
avoidable pitfalls encountered by the earlier adopters in Europe.
investors, foreign or domestic, overall project returns are being squeezed or even negated.
Education and awareness raising is needed particularly around quality management
This is all very risky for the equity owner and lender alike. The short-term squeeze on OPEX
and quality systems and processes and a much greater focus placed on the operational lifetime of these assets. Beyond the initial frenzy of project development, construction and commissioning, if not addressed, these issues will lock assets into operating sub-optimally
means that there is no budget for high value asset management that brings with it quality management systems and services and crucially, experience. The best asset managers will improve yield and reduce total costs both of which mitigate these negative pressures on
for the next 25-35 years. The impact is tangibly on project IRR’s (Internal Rate of Return)
IRR.
and here WiseEnergy will set out why and what needs to be done.
The challenge is how to overcome this area of tension which is not unique to the Indian
As has been widely documented, the cost of Solar in India has plummeted. In less than a
market, but where there is a perfect storm. It is for the experienced, UK, Asset Managers
decade, costs have fallen from INR 15 /kWh in 2009 to less than INR 3 /kWh in 2017. This fall has been driven largely by a decline in module prices and by aggressive bidding for
with a strong long-term service offering to break this cycle with the demonstration of proof and a clear proposition that overcomes price being driven down so severely.
government PPA contracts. Whilst the trend is broadly positive as the overall cost of solar
In the UK and Europe, with project development activities curbed following the removal of
becomes competitive vis a vis conventional power, many developers are struggling to
subsidies, the focus has at last shifted away from short term development and construction
build plants in the current environment and many built (at these tariffs) are now struggling.
budget cost cutting to long term asset profitability. The light is now shining on operational
SolarQuarter has already commented that concerns have been raised over the long -term
asset management services. Sadly, for experienced asset managers much of the work
sustainability of projects in their online Industry Trends an Analysis piece last year, “ Solar
is focused on ‘remediation’ of underperforming assets suffering from all those issues
Power Industry in India: Trends and Analysis”.
identified rather than pure-play optimization. In India, there is a very real opportunity to capitalize on the mistakes made from the early European adopters by investing in quality
Why is this, when at INR 3 /kWh, the tariff is the same as successful USA assets where $0.03/kWh is normal and there is less sunlight?
measures early on in the asset lifetime. But support is required to transmit this message to developers, EPC’s, and crucially, investors and asset owners before these mistakes are repeated.
This operational and profit squeeze in India is a threat to the ambitions of the country and developers alike, and early conversations with Banks suggest will lead to a liquidity squeeze too. To maintain project finance IRRs at such low tariffs requires a fall in one or other of the key cost centres being, cost of capital, module prices, Balance of Systems costs (BoS), O&M and other operational costs. However, module prices are now stabilising and may even increase in the short to medium term as a result of the imposed import tariff on modules imported from China. Holding the cost of capital constant for a moment, it becomes clear that developers are left having to drastically cut costs in other critical areas or improving yields, which in India are typically around the P75 range. Of course costs in solar must come down to ensure that the LCOE (Levelized Cost of Energy) falls below that of conventional power but if costs falls too quickly, the operational paradigm becomes perverse with overall project costs over the operational payback period rising above price. We have already seen reduced spend on CAPEX on large portfolios
The short-term squeeze on OPEX means that there is no budget for high value asset management that brings with it quality management systems and services and crucially, experience. The best asset managers will improve yield and reduce total costs both of which mitigate these negative pressures on IRR.
with no investment in essential SCADA systems and numerous projects with no quality management systems in place. Without proper oversight and input from experienced asset managers to improve the flow of information, financial models may as well be built on sand. The corollary is asset underperformance and reduced revenue leading to lower IRR’s, a view documented by Crisil’s Infrastructure Yearbook (Source: DNAIndia).
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Credits: WiseEnergy
Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 30
Industry Insights
Renewable Energy Investments – Why Asset Management Optimisation Matters What is Asset Management Optimisation (AMO)? Asset management is the continual supervision of the financial, commercial and
Figure 1 – Module costs are no longer the largest cost component for roof-top solar PV installations in Germany
administrative tasks necessary to achieve financial out-performance of a portfolio of renewable energy plants. Meanwhile, operational management is the supervision of the technical tasks associated with asset operation, and in particular the monitoring, analysis and reporting of risks and performance, to drive continuous improvement and to anticipate problems. Together, sound asset and operational management will comprise a planned programme of asset management optimisation (AMO). We summarise below the main headline tasks associated with these financial, commercial and technical activities. These tasks serve as indicators for assessment and benchmarking of performance, to optimise asset operation and financial performance. Why does AMO matter? AMO is more important than ever in today’s renewable energy market, characterized as it is by yield compression as a result of competitive tendering of power purchase agreements and growing appetite among institutional investors. The importance of AMO is heightened further by the sharp reduction in equipment prices, such as wind turbines and especially solar modules. These reductions have made non-equipment costs the biggest cost component in renewable energy projects, with the cost of financing the biggest item of all. Furthermore, the advent of PPAs signals a higher demand for ongoing professional management services. Figure 1 shows the contribution of modules towards the total installed cost of roof-top solar installations in Germany, one of the world’s most mature markets. The share of modules has fallen, reflecting Moores law-like price reductions over
Asset management and operations management are about paying detailed attention to the fine detail of running renewable energy power plants in the most efficient way possible. By reducing the risk of things going wrong, such careful management can cut risk and increase returns.
the past decade. That has left a growing share for the remaining costs, and in particular the cost of capital, as well as the costs of remaining hardware and labour.
SolarPower Europe, O&M Best Practices Guidelines Version 2.0
Today, the single-biggest cost of a renewable energy project is actually an invisible one: the cost of capital. Put simply, the riskier the investment, the higher the compensation fee demanded by an investor for making capital available. The cost of this compensation – commonly labelled as the cost of capital – must be paid from the revenues of the projects. Thus, the cost of capital has a direct influence on the project’s return on investment (ROI). Riskier investments command a higher cost of capital, and any unexpected rise in cost of capital will impact bottom line profitability and ROI. Asset management and operations management are about paying detailed attention to the fine detail of running renewable energy power plants in the most efficient way possible. By reducing the risk of things going wrong, such careful management can cut risk and increase returns. Asset management refers to the “white collar” tasks of running a power plant, including financial, commercial and administrative activities. Operational management refers to the “blue collar”, more technical tasks, such as performance monitoring and analysis, service reporting, managing of warranties and maintenance scheduling. Taken together, sound asset and operational management will assure a focused, continuing, centralized attention on performance, thus limiting downside risk, and where possible achieving additional upside. Through coordinated activities, asset managers at Aquila Capital drive value in a number of ways. First, we are involved in a project from day one. In this way, we ensure timely and continuing attention to asset operations across the project lifetime, from the stage of equipment selection, through constant performance monitoring, to refinancing and repowering. Second, we are the lynchpin, working with all project participants, from the asset owners and debt providers to technical and commercial partners, thus sharing knowledge and competences to optimize performance, and drawing on all available skills when solving unexpected problems. Third, asset managers can draw upon economies of scale across their wider portfolios, for a greater breadth and depth of project management experience. These portfolios may benefit from a range of different renewable energy technologies, legal structures, support regimes and geographies, and can therefore be a source for value-adding ideas from all levels within the asset management organization. Aquila Capital is among the leading service providers that have experience in both wind and solar assets on different continents with an installed capacity of over 1.700 MW. We conduct all aspects of renewable energy project optimization, drawing upon expertise from a portfolio across the renewables sector and multiple geographies.
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Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 31
Company News
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SR of Sungrow: Building futures for India’s Young Generation
rowatt Donates Inverter to the Indore Cancer Foundation’s Rooftop Plant
As part of the journey to attract talent and empower the young generation, Sungrow,
Recently Growatt has donated its inverter, Growatt 20KTL3-S to the Indore Cancer
the global leading inverter supplier for renewables, conducted a series of “Solar Inverter
Foundation Charitable Trust (ICF), a not-for-profit charitable organization in central India.
Technical” CSR workshops in India, which are aimed to provide a platform for the students
The ICF was launched on December 27, 1988. It started with objectives to focus on the
to share creative insights towards PV system solutions, and increased their employability
head & neck cancers, the most common cancers in adult Indian men, promote public and
in the renewable energy industry.
medical education, conduct clinical & basic research etc. To reduce carbon footprint and
With the share of renewable energy in the overall generation mix rising across India, there
power the facility with clean solar energy, the ICF proposed an initiative of 20kW solar
are 300,000 job openings in the solar sector for achieving its target of commissioning
plant on the rooftop. After learning the program, Growatt donated a 20kW inverter and
175GW of renewable energy by 2020. However, the lack of employees’ trained with
worked with other parties to contribute to this solar project.
techniques and skills is an existing gap and ongoing challenge within India’s workforce. This gap is increasingly recognized as a barrier to realize the country’s renewable energy target. Knowledge sharing and talent development are among the verticals of Sungrow’s CSR program. The main objective of this technical workshop is to enhance the employability of the college students by giving them a complete overview of all trends, developments and technology innovations of renewable energy, and impart our latest inverter technologies through a comprehensive curriculum comprising theoretical knowledge and hands-on
Growatt has been committed to corporate social responsibility ever since its foundation. It applies responsible practices in the workplace and has been awarded the SA8000 certification. Growatt supports social and charitable causes through donations and has contributed to photovoltaic plants for poverty reduction and remote school with limited access to the grid. The donation to the ICF’s solar plant is one of Growatt’s commitments to the society. The plant has now been commissioned and connected to the grid. This 20kW rooftop project is expected to produce an energy output of approximately 32,000kWh annually,
experience in solar industry. For over two decades, Sungrow has committed to ensuring the highest standards of social responsibility by building PV power plants, libraries and providing scholarships to
which will provide electricity power for the whole facility and help cut the bills. The ICF has expressed their special thanks to Growatt for donating the inverter.
a collection of schools, which brings a positive change in society and drives sustained
“Growatt has entered the Indian solar market since 2011. After years of growth we are now
benefit for the Company’s business.
one of the top inverter brands in rooftop solar. With great power comes great responsibility.
“We are pleased with the enthusiasm and interest from the students and see this as a way
Growatt is committed to social responsibility and we are honored to make this donation
of help them to gain the knowledge and skills to contribute professionally to renewable-
and contribute to the rooftop solar plant of the ICF,” says Frank Qiao, Growatt co-founder
energy industry.” commented Yukun Hu, Country Manager of Sungrow India. “Sungrow
and sales director. “Its annual power generation will help reduce CO2 emissions equivalent
will continuously fulfill corporate social responsibility to achieve a clean energy sustainable
to 400 to 500 trees planted. This is definitely another achievement of the ICF in their noble
future for India.”
work they’ve been doing for decades.”
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irst 5MW SKY Project— Contributed by TATA Power & GoodWe
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aaree Installs Solar Plant in Leh – HIAL University
Suryashakti Kisan Yojana project (SKY project) which was launched by Gujarat government
Waaree Energies, India’s largest solar PV manufacturer, today unveiled its 25 KW rooftop
in early 2018 brought tremendous attentions as Gujarat is poised to become the first state
solar project at Himalayan Institute of Alternatives (HIAL).
in the country to roll out a scheme where farmers can utilize solar to generate electricity for farming and irrigation as well as selling the surplus to the electric grid to obtain additional income. TATA Power Solar is currently installing the first 5 MW pilot project site by site from the end of 2018. They particularly selected GoodWe solar inverters for this demanding project thanks to its extraordinary adaptability for various grid situations and outstanding efficiency during extreme weathers such as non-degradation under 50°C extreme hot climate. A
The project is done by Waaree Energies under its CSR programme and is part of its ongoing efforts to bring the current wave of solar revolution to Ladakh. HIAL has established its position as a renowned institute in the region, founded by the visionary Sonam Wangchuk. HIAL is expected to save close to INR 2 lakh per year. The installation of this project is of critical importance as solar power brings much needed respite to the people of Ladakh, since the region is cut off from the Kashmir valley for the most of winter.
wide range of products were chosen for this pilot project, capacity covers 5-60KW.
The project has installation of 20 KW Waaree 325 Wp modules, which will help meet
“Such government projects must have higher requirements for quality and service, which
the power requirements of the campus, whereas the 5 KW Merlin – Flexible modules will
secures investment payback and guarantees longevity of solar system, which would
power the Greenhouse shelter. Waaree Energies not only donated the panels, but also
differentiate us from many other players on the market. EPC and developer giants tend
ensured their implementation and commissioning. The local climatic conditions, especially
to pay increasing attention on the overall strengths of a supplier, instead of just looking
during the cold winters, make it imperative to have solutions that ensure self-sustainability
at the price” said James Hou, Sales Manager for Asia Pacific. “Like TATA Power, after a
within the region with respect to energy. Solar power presents the optimal option as Leh
very rigorous product selection process, long-term testing and practical use, GoodWe
enjoys clear skies with a high irradiation.
was finally shortlisted as their major inverter partner and has supplied TATA Power Solar with more than 100MW inverters up until now. Cooperation again in this remarkable government program, with a 7-year warranty provided by GoodWe, enhances mutual trust in our partnership.” GoodWe also offers an unparalleled pan-India after-sales service with a local team of 10 people. One of the engineers is based in Gujarat 24/7 to support the construction and commissioning of the SKY project. It is a revolutionary and symbolic step towards empowering farmers to generate their
Commenting on the occasion, Sunil Rathi, Director, Waaree Energies said, “The project is further to our commitment of making energy, especially solar, accessible to all. We have installed our indigenous systems at 1250 + Households, which are yielding over 210,000 litres as output. As we were looking at associating with organisations and individuals who are working towards bettering the society, HIAL became the natural choice. It was a pleasure to associate with a dynamic person like Sonam and HIAL.” Sonam Wangchuk said, “Waaree Energies was our preferred choice when we decided
own electricity using solar energy and helps double their income. GoodWe is committed
to transition to solar energy at HIAL. We were well aware of Waaree’s long standing
to providing high quality and efficient solar solutions in terms of development and
excellence in quality and service, and have first-hand seen their products and solutions.
construction activities and make its own contribution to a renewable and sustainable
My inclination towards innovation found the perfect fitment with Waaree Energies, and we
future in India and as well as all around the world.
hope this is the start of a long association with them.”
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Company News
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UNfarming Secures €20 Million For PV Projects In Poland
anergy Obtains First-OfIts-Kind TüV Integrated Management System Certification In Thin Film Solar Industry
The world’s largest thin-film power solution company, Hanergy Thin Film Power Group
The SUNfarming Group, from Erkner in Germany, has secured a financing framework of
(0566.HK), achieves yet another milestone to stay ahead of its industry peers.
€20 million for the construction of 40 MWp of photovoltaic projects in Poland.
The clean energy giant and its subsidiaries on Jan 14, 2019 (Monday) have successfully gained a group certification including ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 integrated management system certification by TüV SÜD Greater China (TüV SÜD). TüV integrated
SUNfarming Polska plans to expand its solar portfolio in Poland this year with projects of at least 40 MWp capacity. The projects were predominantly realized through auctions held in 2017 and 2018. The first projects to be financed through the acquired funding line are four PV plants, each of 1 MWp for a total capacity of 4 MWp, in Ostrołęka. The plants were
management system is the first group certification issued to any thin film solar
put into operation in December and were awarded a contract in the first Polish test tender,
company.
held at the end of 2016.
The group certification was issued to Hanergy in the pursuit of successfully meeting
Another portion of the financing is planned for new projects with a total capacity of 5
international standards in the integration of various management systems with standardization and principally for accomplishing the industrialization of thin-film solar
MWp in the SUNfarming portfolio. Three SUNfarming solar parks, each of 1 MWp, will be built near Łask in Łódź Province and two more will be developed in the province of Lower Silesia, near Ząbkowice Śląskie. The projects were secured in a tender of June 2017, and
energy. The grant of the certification is the testament of the fact that not only does
completion is due by the end of June. By winning tenders, all the PV parks benefit from
Hanergy focus on the quality of products, but also pays attention to environmental
15-year “contracts for difference” with Polish Energy Agency URE, which guarantees a fixed
and personnel safety issues.
feed-in tariff for each kWh produced by paying the difference from the market price.
Besides, in order to encourage further cooperation and communication between Hanergy and TüV SÜD, a long-term strategic cooperation agreement on product certification was signed and a number of consensuses were reached on this issue
The financing facility of €20 million taken up by the SUNfarming Group will be used to finance the construction phase of existing and planned PV projects in Poland and was collateralized at the level of a Polish asset holding company owned by the project companies. SUNfarming was supported by a well-known financial advisor from Frankfurt
between the two parties.
am Main, who was tasked with structuring the transaction and debt sourcing.
Wu Di, Chief Quality Officer, Hanergy Thin Film Power Group stated, “Acquiring the
“We are pleased to announce the closing of this transaction, which we completed within
group certification essentially is the testimony of the company’s efforts to meet
six weeks of the turn of the year,” said Martin Tauschke, managing director of SUNfarming
the international standards with finesse and fervor. As a multinational clean energy company and the global leader in thin-film solar power generation, Hanergy has
GmbH and SUNfarming Polska sp.z.o.o. “We thank all involved for the efficient and professional cooperation. The bridging line enables us to consistently implement our strategy in Poland and accelerate our international growth. With a planned PV capacity
always regarded product quality prodigious importance. We focus on quality, reliability,
of 1.2 GW by 2020, [and] with currently only about 360 MW of installed capacity, Poland
durability and standardization of products.”
represents an important future market for us.”
R
D
isen Energy Completed 5 GW Installation In 2018
NV GL Helps Take Solar Wholesale
Risen Energy Co., Ltd concluded the year of 2018 by announcing the completion of 5 GW
DNV GL is supporting commercial warehouse operator WDP with engineering services for
global installation, including modules sales and project installation.
the installation of 40,000 PV panels across its units.
5 GW is a breakthrough installation amount for the ‘rising’ Risen Energy, who just
DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and certification
accomplished an unprecedented 10,000 million RMB annual sales revenue in 2017.
body, is working with Warehouses De Pauw to power its warehouse fleet with solar energy
The 5 GW module and project installation were spread in a variety of market places, such
and meet the company’s ambitious sustainability targets.
as China, Europe, rest of Asia, Africa, South America, North America and Australia. China
By providing owner’s engineering services to WDP, DNV GL will deliver technical support
market topped the ranking list by completing 1,870 MW module and project installation
for the installation of 40,000 solar PV panels for the company’s warehouses in the
in 2018, followed by the rest of Asia, North America, Australia, Europe, South America
Netherlands. The 10 MWh project comprises 14 systems producing enough electricity to
and Africa. The regional allocation of module and project installation demonstrated a
power 2,850 households for a year. The construction of the first PV solar system, of 630
well-balanced market structure, thanks to Risen Energy’s market globalization strategy for the fast few years. Although China market still took up 37% of the total market share, the installation was widely spread in Central China, South China, North China, Northwest China, East China and etc. “It is encouraging for me to know the 2018 installation result. And it is even more exciting to know that our modules and solutions have been accepted by almost all the major continents in the world. In the past few years, we made all efforts to make Risen Energy products and solutions more globalized, more user-friendly, more intelligent and more reliable. We also tended to make our services and talents more localized and closer to end
kWp – and including approximately 2,500 panels – started in July and was commissioned in November. Similar to PV installations at a private property, commercial buildings such as warehouses need to comply with clear regulations related to insulation and energy supply. WDP has set ambitious renewable energy targets to meet and exceed the environmental guidelines, to guarantee the sustainable energy supply of its warehouses. DNV GL’s solar experts will provide owner’s engineering support for feasibility, construction and installation of the PV solar systems. This includes feasibility studies for the PV systems
users. For R&D end, we already cooperated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
on different warehouses and solar PV technology selection. During construction and
and China JILIANG University. We are the first module manufacturer who realized the mass
delivery, DNV GL will provide quality assurance and support WDP with the commercial
production of 370W bifacial dual-glass modules, with the annual production capacity of
contracts regarding the sustainable generated electricity to ensure it provides the
1GW. “In the meanwhile, the only one and also the first one in the world, our bifacial AlOx
necessary benefits for WDP and its customers. WDP will also take advantage of DNV GL’s
passivated PERC technology allows our cell efficiency to reach up to 22.51%, with the
solar monitoring expertise for solar plants, delivering asset control and management to
average cell efficiency of 22.19%. For product and solution application, our global module
optimize the performance of all its solar panels.
and project accumulated installation already exceeded 15 GW worldwide.”
“Sustainability is an essential part of our business model”, said Tony de Pauw, CEO of WDP.
By the end of 2018, Risen Energy already augmented its annual production capacity to
“Power generation is not our core business, so we needed a knowledgeable partner that
8.6 GW based on substantial market demand for Risen products and solutions. We see an
can help us from planning [and] installation to monitoring of our solar assets. DNV GL has
even more “rising” year for Risen Energy in 2019.
all the expertise at hand.”
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 33 33
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 34
SE- 2019
Join one of the Most Prominent Solar Events in India
India Solar Expo
http://www.aiss.org.in
15th to 17th Feb. 2018, IIA Bhawan Ground, Gomti Nagar, Lucknow, U.P. (India)
I
Welcome to ISE (India Solar Expo)
ndian Industries Association (IIA) & UPNEDA welcomes you to the world of endless opportunities in one of the world’s biggest solar market. Indian Market is so diverse, so wide and so multifarious that it will not only challenge your ultimate marketing skills, but also make you hone your company strategic tools. There is a market which is seething with an insatiable appetite for power, so what are you waiting for!!! Come and explore this wonderful opportunity, Welcome to ISE- India Solar Expo 2019. Who should embellish a stall at ISE ? Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ
Solar System Integrators Ÿ Solar Cell Manufacturers Ÿ Solar Module Manufacturers Ÿ Module Manufacturing Line Suppliers Ÿ Solar Farm Developers Ÿ Solar water Heaters Manufacturers Ÿ Solar Street Lights & Home Systems Manufacturers Ÿ Battery Manufacturers Ÿ Inverter Manufacturers Ÿ Solar BOS(Balance of System) Manufacturers Ÿ EPC Companies Ÿ Solar PV/Thermal Installers and Contractors Ÿ Suppliers of Raw Materials Ÿ Solar Turn Key Solution Providers Ÿ
Solar Enthusiasts you will meet Builders & Solar Farm Developers Construction Professionals Projects Heads Investors Trade Buyers and Business Buyers Industrial Purchasing Managers Engineers and Installers Green Consultants and Experts Local Agents and Distributors Local & National Government Institutions Domestic and International Associations Energy Storage Systems Industry Executives Transmission & Distribution System Operators Policy Decision Makers Media and Publishers Architects Commercial & Domestic End-Users
3 Days Full of Business Opportunities !
Organizer
Indian Industries Association
Co-Organizer
UPNEDA
Special concessions for MSME’s and SC/ST Exhibitors available as per Government Schemes. For Stall Bookings/Visiters/Seminar Registrations visit www.aiss.org.in or Contact IIA H.O. at 8601855543, 8601855546 or via Email at: contact@aiss.org.in; mkb@iiaonline.in
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 35
Industry Industry Insights Insights
Are Rooftop Solar Plants a Solution to Power Cuts?
It is a well-known fact that India’s power sector is largely dependent on exhaustible fossil fuels like coal and as of 2016, 85% of the Indian population have access to electricity. While having access to electricity doesn’t rule out the common problem of power-cuts that has
1. Grid-Tied Inverters: These inverters, as the name suggests, are completely dependent on the grid. They are
become an everyday part and parcel of life. Many people live under the misconception
primarily designed to supply the power generated by the panels to the grid and to supply
that power cuts are due to the lack of coal, that is hardly the case. Most power cuts are due
the load while grid power is available. This kind of inverter will not allow solar panels to
to structural faults like wiring, problems with sub-station generators or simply the inability of the grid infrastructure to support the demand of electricity. Although the term ‘global warming’ was coined in 1975, it wasn’t until the late 1900’s that governments and people started taking serious measures to delay it. And it became
continue to produce power during a power cut because it depends solely on the grid to provide reference voltage.
abundantly clear that the world had to start looking for cleaner sources of energy and
2. Off Grid Inverters:
methods of operating. Thus, began the quest of turning to renewable source of energy.
These inverters, as the name suggests, are completely independent of the grid. They are
The most common and abundantly available source of energy, we realized, was the sun itself. Therefore, giving birth to a boom in solar power plants that provided an alternative solution to our energy problem. While there was rapid mushrooming of large-scale solar
primarily designed to work with battery backups and diesel generators. The reference voltage is provided to the panels from the battery backups. While this is a great option
power plants, many home-owners installed rooftop solar PV assets to compound, if not
for locations with little to no power grid coverage, it is not advisable if the solar panels are
completely substitute, their pre-existing electrical infrastructure.
meant to work in parallel to your pre-existing electricity connection.
One of the most common misconception among first time solar panel owners was that their panels were independent of their area’s power grid and that it would continue to supply uninterrupted power in the event of a power cut. However, this, too, is not the case. Not all panels are independent of the power grid and most of them do not continue to supply uninterrupted power during power cuts because of two factors:
1. Reference Voltage:
3. Grid Interactive Inverters: These inverters are independent of both the grid as well as battery-backup systems. It can use either one as and when the need arises. Along with a connection to the grid, these inverters also need a connection to a diesel generator or battery backup so that in case of power failure or cut, it can switch between the two.
The amount of incident sunlight on the panel varies throughout the day, because of clouds, shadows, etc, which directly impacts the power output of the panels. Because this constant variation can cause equipment damage, panels are connected to inverters. The main task
4. Hybrid Inverters:
of an inverter, connected to a solar panel, is to constantly match the power output of the
These inverters are also called bidirectional inverters. They are a one system solution for all
panels to another source of steady power. This steady source of power may be the power
solar panel related problems. The inverter caters for every possible problem that can arise
grid, diesel generators or batteries. And since most household PV assets use inverters that are connected to the power grid, because the amount of power produced cannot justify the use of a diesel generator, their solar panels do not continue to supply power during a power cut even in the presence of enough sunlight.
2. Anti-Islanding: Though this is a problem seldom faced by home-owners, anti-islanding is the second
like, reference voltage, power failure and also has systems in place to curb islanding of the panels. These inverters are best used in plants where there is a requirement to manage power from more than one source. So clearly, choice of inverter largely determines the use and effectiveness of your rooftop solar panels. It is advisable, at this stage, to assess your needs, based on previous electricity bills and power-cut history, and your expectations of PV panels before making a decision.
factor. In the event of a power cut, a large portion of the grid is non-energised. This non-
It is also important to understand the needs and limitations of solar panels as well as the
energised area is called an island. If the solar panel continuously pumps power into this
options available.
non-energised portion of the grid, it gives rise to the possibility of electrocution to anyone in close contact with the panels. In order sidestep this risk, the inverter, usually, turns the PV asset off during a power cut.
In conclusion, yes rooftop solar panels can be a solution to power cuts. However, it largely depends on the size of the solar PV system and the inverter.
From the two reasons stated above, it is quite clear that the only real factor that is hindering a solar panel’s ability to produce power in the event of a power cut is the type of inverter being employed. Of which there are four main types:
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Credits: Mahindra Susten
Solar SolarQuarter Quarter••January January2019 2019 36
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 37
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 38
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© 2019 GOLDI SOLAR PVT. LTD.
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 39
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Solar Quarter • January 2019 40