Study estimates global floating solar potential at 1,302 TWh – pv India magazine

A research team from the UK has calculated the global potential of deploying floating solar panels on almost 68,000 lakes and reservoirs. It found that some countries can generate most of their electricity demand from floating solar panels, while five are able to meet their entire electricity demand.

June 16, 2024 Patrick Jowett

From pv Global magazine

New research shows that some countries could meet their total electricity needs using floating solar panels.

The research team, made up of scientists from Bangor and Lancaster universities and the UK Center for Ecology and Hydrology, calculated the daily electrical output of floating solar cells on almost 68,000 lakes and reservoirs around the world, using available climate data for each location.

Their data included lakes and reservoirs where floating solar technology is most likely to be installed. All locations included were within 10 km of a population center, were not in a protected area, and did not dry out or freeze for more than six months of the year. The researchers calculated the efficiency based on a floating system covering 10% of the selected area, up to a maximum of 30 km2.

The potential annual electricity production from floating solar cells on 67,893 bodies of water was 1,302 TWh, which is approximately four times the total annual electricity demand in the UK. The figure of 1,302 TWh represents a conservative surface coverage of 10%, while the total theoretical potential was estimated at 14,906 TWh, which quantifies the power generation potential of floating solar photovoltaics on over 1 million bodies of water worldwide.

Although production in the study areas varied depending on altitude, latitude and season, five countries – Benin, Ethiopia, Kiribati, Rwanda and Papua New Guinea – were found to have the potential to meet their entire electricity needs from floating solar PV. Other countries may be close, such as Bolivia and Tonga, which could meet 87% and 92% of their electricity needs.

Many countries, mainly in Africa, the Caribbean, South America and Central Asia, could meet 40% to 70% of their annual electricity demand using floating solar PV. The average for all countries was 16%. The European countries with the highest score were Finland (17% of its electricity demand) and Sweden and Denmark (16%).

“Even with the criteria we set to create a realistic floating solar PV deployment scenario, the benefits are general, mainly in lower-income countries with high levels of sunlight, but also in northern European countries,” said lead author Iestyna Woolwaya. “The criteria we chose were based on obvious exclusions, such as lakes in protected areas, but also on what could reduce the costs and risks of implementation.”

Scientists warn that more research is needed on the overall environmental impact of floating solar power. They suggest that decisions on the deployment of networks should take into account the intended function of water bodies and their use, as well as their potential impact on the environment. “We still don’t know exactly how floating panels might impact a natural lake ecosystem, under different conditions and locations,” Woolway added. “However, the potential gain in power generation from floating solar cells is clear, so we need to conduct this research before this technology can be safely deployed.”

The results of their research can be found in the research article “Decarbonizing the potential of floating solar photovoltaics on lakes around the world”, published in: nature water.

Last year, an international team of researchers assessed the potential for floating solar power in almost 115,000 reservoirs around the world and found it could reach 9,400 TWh.

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