Photovoltaic Installations: Around the World

Solar Tunnel

In June of 2011, high-efficiency solar panels — 16,000 of them, with a rating of 245W each — were turned on, on the roof of a high-speed rail tunnel in Antwerp, Belgium (all of which were supplied by JinkoSolar). The 3.6-kilometer (2.2-mile) tunnel was built to protect trains from falling trees as they pass through an ancient forest. The solar installation is the result of a collaboration between Belgian rail operator Infrabel, renewable energy developer Enfinity, the municipalities of Brasschaat and Schoten, financing companies FINEA and IKA, and construction company, Solar Power Systems.

The project, known as the Solar Tunnel, is the first of its kind in Europe in that it is the first time the railway infrastructure has been used to generate green energy. The €15.7 million ($21.5 million) project will supply 3300 MWh of electricity annually, enough to power 4,000 trains.

The installation covers a total surface area of 50,000m² (538,000 ft2). The electricity produced by the installation will be used to power railway infrastructure, such as signals, lighting and the heating of stations. It will also power the trains using the Belgian rail network. The endeavor is estimated to reduce CO₂ emissions by 2,400 tons per year.

Nichols Farms

For the State of California, agribusiness is a major part of the state’s economy. It is also a segment that is heavily dependent on electricity and is often criticized for lack of environmental responsibility.

At Nichols Farms, the electricity consumption is high, but so is the owner’s sense of environmental responsibility. The farm is where two generations of the Nichols family work together to grow, process, package and market pistachios. Generating clean energy was seen as both an operational cost reduction and a sustainability project for the farm. To this end, SolFocus partnered with EPC Bechtel Power and developer Sol Orchard to design and construct a one megawatt Concentrator Photovoltaic (CPV) power plant for the farm, based in Hanford, California.

The SolFocus CPV installation will produce 2.244 million kilowatt hours in the first year, which is roughly 70 percent of the processing facility electricity demand. The power plant, located on six acres adjacent to the pistachio processing facility, consists of 119 8.8-kW SolFocus SF-1100S CPV systems. The plant was connected to the regional electrical grid serviced by SoCal Edison in April 2011. The Nichols Farms project is delivering lower operating costs, and the impact of future increasing energy costs has been minimized. According to owner Chuck Nichols, the plant will pay for itself in just six years.

This CPV agribusiness project is the first of its kind, and one that immediately impacts sustainability. According to SolFocus, the CPV technology provides high energy yield and a small environmental footprint, meeting the needs of the Central Valley region which has abundant sun and a high desire to reduce emissions in the air.

The importance of the plant as a milestone project for agriculture was evidenced by the attendance of many dignitaries at the ribbon cutting on April 1, 2011, which included UC Davis Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi, Special Advisor to the Governor Michael Picker, Bechtel Power President Ian Copeland, and local and state legislative representatives.

Fischer Properties Depot Park

The Department of Energy’s initiative to turn brownfields into “brightfields” through solar power could generate clean energy, jobs and revenue for the community. If the 15 million acres of brownfield space in the U.S. were converted into solar generating brightfields it would provide 3 million megawatts of electricity.

SPG Solar has started the conversion of these community hazards and eyesores into productive “green” ventures. Depot Park is SPG Solar’s 3-MW installation at a redeveloped U.S. Army military facility and designated Superfund site. This solar installation, one of the largest ground-mounted tracking solar project in California, is deemed by Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson as a “brownfield site into a renewable energy showcase.”

This 3-MW solar installation includes a 12,600-panel array and will produce enough power to meet approximately 40 percent of the annual electricity needs at Depot Park, which is the former Sacramento Army Depot. The installation operates as a peak-shaving efficiency project, leveling surges in electricity demand during peak usage times and reducing the park’s overall demand for electricity from the Sacramento Municipal Utility District.

This sizeable solar power system is maximizing land space that cannot be used for other applications - converting a brownfield into a greenfield – and has created nearly 100 green jobs in the community. The installation was completed on Dec. 29, 2010.

City of Madera wastewater treatment facility

The City of Madera’s wastewater treatment plant is one of the city’s largest utility buildings, and its vast energy needs cost Madera millions of dollars in maintenance annually. In an effort to reduce electricity costs for taxpayers and make use of abundant land while achieving sustainability initiatives, the City of Madera commissioned REC Solar to develop a 1.1MW solar installation with dual-axis tracking for the wastewater facility. This makes it one of the nation’s largest dual-axis tracker systems. Design and construction began in early 2010, and the system was completed in August 2010.

REC Solar used 94 dual-axis trackers that allow the mounted panels to follow the sun throughout the day. As such, the system produces 35 percent more energy compared to a traditional ground-mounted system. Adding to the technological complexity of the project, REC Solar said it had to navigate environmental sensitivities, as the system is located near an environmental marsh. Due to these delicate ground conditions, engineers determined that the system would be grounded with 19 pilings, each driven 10 feet into the ground, rather than digging holes. This enables the site to drain and poses minimal impact to the marsh.

Spreading 5,264 of REC Group’s panels over nine acres of land, the system represented Madera’s first step toward greening its municipal buildings. It is expected to produce an estimated 2.4 million kilowatt hours of energy annually and over 45 million kWh over 20 years, enough energy to power more than 4,200 average U.S. homes for one year. The city estimates the power system will meet 62 percent of the wastewater treatment facility’s power needs and save as much as $3 million off the plant’s power bills over the next 20 years. The environmental assets associated with the system will offset an estimated 47 million pounds of CO₂ over twenty years, the equivalent of removing an estimated 4,600 cars off the road for one year.