The US Nationwide Renewable Vitality Laboratory (NREL) and its companions are investigating the technical potential for floating PV throughout Southeast Asia.
Floating photovoltaics supply a promising renewable vitality answer to handle land use constraints in electrical energy technology. The know-how is of specific significance for land-scarce international locations, together with many island nations in Southeast Asia, as they search to transition to zero-emission economies.
NREL is collaborating with the US Company for Worldwide Improvement (USAID) Regional Improvement Mission for Asia to discover the technical potential of floating PV throughout the Affiliation of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). ASEAN has set a objective of attaining 35% of put in capability from renewable vitality sources by 2025.
“[Floating PV] The arrays are situated in our bodies of water akin to lakes, reservoirs, or water remedy ponds, the place they are often put in alone or along side hydropower dams,” NREL mentioned.
NREL says floating PV is especially enticing in areas the place hydropower infrastructure is deliberate or already in place and elevated frequency or severity of droughts may increase reliability considerations for hydropower manufacturing. . Southeast Asia is especially uncovered to this lack of hydropower manufacturing as a result of it has a powerful community of established services.
“Moreover, a lot of the area is roofed by rainforest ecosystems,” mentioned Evan Rosenlieb, a geospatial information scientist for NREL. “Placing PV on water might be a approach to improve renewable vitality technology with out deforestation.”
Southeast Asia can be a hotbed for the rising follow of aquaculture, or elevating fish, crustaceans, and aquatic crops in a managed physique of water. These websites are focused as a possible match for floating PV.
“This rising mixture of aquaculture and photovoltaics, generally known as AquaPV, could permit international locations to co-locate vitality and meals manufacturing in present pure or synthetic water our bodies whereas decreasing general environmental affect of each sectors,” mentioned Prateek Joshi, NREL vitality engineer.
Joshi and the NREL crew mentioned aquaculture and photo voltaic may assist enhance meals safety within the area, providing devoted, sustainable vitality manufacturing to crucial meals sources.
The information accompanying the report is publicly out there as a useful resource for builders taken with studying extra concerning the technical and financial potential of floating PV within the area.
“This information will result in additional discussions and inform choices on the potential position of [floating PV] within the area. This might not be doable with out all the prevailing work of the previous [floating PV] research and former RE Knowledge Explorer instrument growth,” Sika Gadzanku, the NREL vitality know-how and coverage researcher.
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