Solar Power (Global Market)

Main article: Alternative power

Developing Technologies for Solar Power

Main article: Technologies for solar power

Solar power in Russia

Main article: Solar power (Russian market)

Solar power in the United States

Main article: Solar power in the United States

In the world

2024: Germany launches largest solar farm in Europe Billions of euros spent on it

On April 9, 2024, the German investment company Hansainvest Real Assets announced the launch of Europe's largest solar farm. The site called Witznitz Solar Farm is located 30 km from Leipzig, and its peak capacity reaches 605 MW. Read more here.

2023

Global investment in solar power reaches $393 billion

At the end of 2023, investments in solar power on a global scale reached $393 billion. For comparison, in 2018, the volume of investments was estimated at $144 billion. Thus, over the specified period, costs increased by 173%. Such data in early November 2024 was released by the Minister of India for New and Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi.

In many regions around the world, solar has become the most affordable source of electricity, surpassing coal and gas, he said. While not all countries are equally powered by solar, each can contribute substantially to the energy balance through the energy of the sun as such.

Solar power investments globally reach $393 billion

In 2023, solar power accounted for 5.5% of global electricity, and its role in the energy balance is growing rapidly. That dynamic is fueled by record investments expected to reach $500 billion by the end of 2024, Joshi says.

SolarPower Europe estimates that 447 GW of new solar power plants were commissioned globally in 2023, compared to 239 GW installed in 2022. As a result, the total capacity of solar power plants reached 1.6 TW. However, record growth is not seen in all parts of the world, with roughly 80% of installations concentrated in the top 10 markets, which include advanced economies.

It is also noted that China is leading in terms of the development of solar power: in 2023, it accounted for 57% of all commissioned capacities - about 253 GW. In second place are the United States with a score of 32.4 GW, and Brazil closes the top three with 15.4 GW. Walburga Hemetsberger, CEO of SolarPower Europe, says "the world has really entered a sunny era."^[1]

Top 10 leading countries in solar power

In 2023, China became the leader in the volume of new solar power plants. The country put into operation approximately 235 GW of photovoltaic installations, as stated in a study by Statista, the results of which TAdviser got acquainted with in mid-November 2024.

It is noted that solar energy is the richest of all energy resources and can be used even in cloudy weather. Moreover, the speed at which solar energy is captured by the Earth is about 10 thousand times higher than the energy consumption of humanity. Solar technology can provide heat, natural light and electricity for a variety of applications.

The study said that in 2023 the total capacity of existing solar farms China exceeded 640 GW. This is more than total capacity, and combined USA Japan India. Moreover, China is actively developing the direction of solar energy, including the production of the panels themselves. In particular, Jinko Solar, one of the world's largest manufacturers, is based in China. solar panels

The second place in the published ranking is occupied by the United States, which in 2023 commissioned 33.2 GW of new capacities provided by solar energy. India closes the top three with 16.6 GW. The top ten also included Germany (14.3 GW), Brazil (11.9 GW), Spain (7.7 GW), Japan (6.3 GW), Poland (6 GW), Italy (5.3 GW) and the Netherlands (4.2 GW). The total contribution of all other states is estimated at 52.6 GW, which is 4.5 times less than the result of one China.

The Statista report also notes that the global combined capacity of deployed photovoltaic installations exceeded 1.6 terawatts by 2023. For comparison: in 2020, the indicator slightly exceeded 1 GW.^[2]

35.6% of all global solar power capacity is in China

35.6% of all world solar capacity to power falls on, China in second place in importance - USA providing 14.7% of world production, all countries Europe in total about 18%, very fast growing - India 6.9%, - 5.9 Japan %, countries of South and Central America in total 5%, the Middle East and - 3.4 Africa %.

The pace of implementation is incredible, just 10 years ago China had practically nothing - about 8.4 generation TVt·ch, and in 2023 almost 600 TVt·ch, South and Central America began capacity integration from 2018 and is increasing its pace annually - about 25 TVt·ch per year.

New participants are emerging, such as South Korea and, Vietnam which are also connecting from 2018-2019 to the expansion of solar energy. Japan Of course, the United States and Europe are also growing exponentially, which integrate 40-50 TVt·ch of new generation per year.

UAE launches world's largest solar farm

On November 16, 2023, the UAE commissioned the world's largest solar farm, the Al-Dafra site, which is located approximately 35 km from Abu Dhabi. The capacity of this power plant is 2 GW, which is enough to meet the energy needs of almost 200 thousand average households. Read more here.

Indonesia launches Southeast Asia's largest floating solar station

On November 8, 2023, Indonesian President Joko Widodo opened Southeast Asia's largest floating solar power plant. The commissioning of this farm is expected to help the country switch to clean energy from renewable sources and reduce coal consumption. Read more here.

India builds world's largest solar-wind power plant

In mid-August 2023, Indian company Adani Green Energy Limited announced the completion of the world's largest solar wind farm. The site is located in the Indian state of Rajasthan in the northwest of the country. Read more here.

Lithuanian Green Genius sells portfolio of solar parks in Spain to Swedish OX2

In January 2023, Green Genius said it had sold a 152MW portfolio of solar parks in Spain to a Swedish OX2. The amount of the transaction was not disclosed.

2022

Wind and solar together produced more electricity than gas in Europe for the first time

In 2022, wind and solar together produced more electricity in Europe for the first time than coal and even gas.

Production of the world's first cars with solar panels has begun

On December 6, 2022, the Dutch company Lightyear announced the start of mass production of the world's first car capable of fully receiving energy from solar panels. Read more here.

Qatar launches country's largest solar power plant

On October 18, 2022, the official commissioning ceremony of Qatar's largest solar power plant took place: a farm called Al-Kharsaah Solar PV Power Plant (KSPP) provides up to 800 MW of power. Read more here.

The construction of the world's first plant for the production of synthetic fuel on solar energy has begun

In early September 2022, it became known that Synhelion, a project of the ETH Zurich group, began construction of its own industrial plant for the production of synthetic fuel using solar heat DAWN. Located in Germany, the plant will demonstrate the entire process from the concentration of sunlight to the production of synthetic liquid fuels on an industrial scale. Read more here.

2020

Hevel commissioned two solar power plants in Kazakhstan

In Almaty region of the Republic of Kazakhstan, solar power plants "Kapshagai" with a capacity of 3 MW and "Sarybulak" with a capacity of 4.95 MW were put into operation. The investor and the general contractor for the construction of generation facilities were the structures of the Hevel Group of Companies. The company announced this on October 22, 2020. Read more here.

Hevel will introduce sun tracking systems at its SES in Kazakhstan

On September 25, 2020, the Hevel Group of Companies announced that it would equip solar power plants in Kazakhstan with a complex of sun tracking systems. Read more here.

2019

Hevel dual-sided solar modules installed at Coca-Cola plant in Switzerland

On December 5, 2019, the Hevel group of companies announced that it exported 115 kW of two-way heterostructural solar modules to Switzerland. The modules were installed on the roof of one of the Coca-Cola factories in the commune of Waltz. This is the first solar generation facility on double-sided solar modules, put into commercial operation in Europe. Read more here.

Loan agreement with Hevel to finance the construction of SES Nura in Kazakhstan

"Hevel" Eurasian Development Bank On November 6, 2019, the Group of Companies and (EDB) announced that they had signed a loan agreement for the opening of a long-term multi-currency credit line in the amount of 65.2 million euros for financings constructions the Nura solar power plant project with an installed capacity of 100 MW in the Akmola region of the Republic. Kazakhstan More. here

Floating solar panels strengthen their position in clean energy market

Floating solar panels came to the attention of experts back in 2011, when the French company Ciel & Terre developed its first "float" - the Hydrelio Floating PV system, notes the EVWind website^[3].

The floating island panel turned out to be in demand in the clean energy market, many countries have adopted this method of obtaining electricity. For example, in where Chile mining minerals requires constant energy and water costs: by putting a solar panel on the surface of numerous lakes, the government has reduced the cost of mining and reduced the carbon footprint.

Floating battery panels are still being tested at the Los Bronques mine, near which an experimental energy island has been created - the Los Tortolas project is funded by companies from Great Britain and, USA the area solar panels is still 112 square meters, Chilean Minister mining of Industry Baldo Procurica. In April, Tortolas was inaugurated, the floating battery cost 250 thousand, but if dollars successful, the area will be expanded to 40 hectares.

According to experts, solar power has huge prospects in Chile. There are about 800 ponds in the country that can be used to install floating solar power plants (SES). According to the engineers, the float battery is placed in the center of the water body, which is used to store "tails" (waste from mining). Thus, a triple benefit is achieved:

• the shadow lowers the water temperature of the pond;
• evaporation of water is reduced by 80%;
• production is cheaper many times, working on the energy of the sun.

Environmentalists applaud such a plan, because there is much more water left in the mine for natural balance, this approach can reduce the regional consumption of already scarce fresh water.

Through this system, Chile is rationalizing fresh water consumption in line with the goal of improving the mining process and reducing fresh water consumption by 50% by 2030. The carbon footprint is also automatically reduced by the production of clean energy.

Chile gradually increases share of clean energy

The Los Bronques mine is located 65 km from the capital of Chile at an altitude of 3.5 km above sea level. Nearly 20% of the energy that is produced and used in the Latin American country in 2019 is clean. In 2013, the figure was only six percent, which demonstrates a steady increase in the share of green power in the country's national economy and its commitment to the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement (2015).

Engineering developments from Ciel & Terre, as well as financial assistance, gave Chile the opportunity to expand the horizons of the energy market and break out of the vicious cycle in which electricity is obtained by burning minerals. Floating solar panels are easy to install, maintain and manage. The high density thermoplastic, installed at an angle of 12 degrees, is completely environmentally friendly and recyclable. Floating SES does not harm nature, is economically profitable and flexible in the settings.

According to Chilean engineers, this is a simple and affordable alternative to terrestrial solar power facilities. This is ideal for water-intensive industries limited in water consumption or land.

Hevel to build 100 MW solar power plant in Kazakhstan

The Hevel Group of Companies has begun construction of the Nura solar power plant located in the Akmola region of the Republic of Kazakhstan. This was reported to Hevel on June 17, 2019. As expected, SES with a capacity of 100 MW will become one of the largest solar power plants in the CIS. Read more here.

2018

EU solar power market up 36% for the year

Preliminary data on the development of solar power engineering specialists in European countries have been published. Still leading, Germany came out in second place, Turkey third place went to the Netherlands.

According to SolarPower Europe Solar power Association statistics, the European market grew significantly in 2018. In 28 EU countries, 8 GW of solar power plants were put into operation - this is 36% more than in 2017. At the same time, 11 countries have already exceeded their obligations to introduce renewable energy sources and reached the level of 2020. The broader European market, including Turkey, Russia, Ukraine, Norway, Switzerland, Serbia, Belarus, also showed an increase of 11 GW, which is 20% more than a year earlier.

The large solar power market on the European continent in 2018 was once again Germany with new SES with a total capacity of 3 GW. Turkey, due to the high pace of market development over the past two years, took second place (1.64 GW). The Netherlands, where a national record of 1.4 GW of commissioned SES was also set, took third place at the end of the year.

According to experts, in 2019 the industry will grow even more - the development of solar power in Europe will be affected by factors such as the abolition of duties on Chinese solar panels and the competitiveness of industrial photovoltaic solar power plants.

SoftBank to build Saudi Arabia's biggest solar power plant

Saudi Arabia, together with the Japanese telecommunications corporation SoftBank, will build the world's largest solar power plant with a capacity of 200 GW, Al Arabia^[4] reports in March 2018^[5].

The corresponding memorandum of intent was signed in New York by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud and SoftBank CEO Masayesha Son. The prince is in the United States on a three-week official visit, the TV channel notes.

The planned capacity of a cascade of solar panels of 200 GW is several times more than that of any existing solar power plant. By comparison, California-based Topaz Solar Farm, one of the largest such power plants, has a peak capacity of about 550 MW. The energy there is accumulated by 9 million thin-layer photovoltaic modules.

According to Bloomberg, the construction of such a large facility will require an investment of $200 billion. Initial investments amount to $5 billion, of which $1 billion will come from the Vision Fund, which is managed by SoftBank. Investors intend to raise the rest of the amount in the form of loans, which they plan to repay through revenues from the sale of electricity.

Egypt to build world's largest solar plant

In total, Benban Solar Park will consist of 32 solar installations. The first of them, with a total capacity of 165 MW, have already begun work, writes Electrek^[6].

In 2019 Egypt , the largest solar park in the world will begin work. It will be called Benban Solar Park, its cost will be $823 million, and capacity - 1.6-2 GW. The park will be located in the desert on an area of ​ ​ 37.3 km square meters. the project will not receive government funding, but it is provided with a contract for a period of 25 years, according to which the state-owned company Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company undertakes to purchase electricity from it at a price of 7.8 cents per kWh.

At least 325 MW of installations will consist of a combination of bifacial solar panels and uniaxial trackers from NEXTracker. Another 65 MW of uniaxial trackers will be supplied by the German company Mounting Systems. In total, Benban Solar Park will consist of 32 solar installations. The first of them, with a total capacity of 165 MW, have already begun work.

The park is a comprehensive government-backed financial model that allows investment groups to develop large-scale solar projects at an affordable price. Thus, one of the divisions of the World Bank Group provides the opportunity to insure "political risk" in the amount of $210 million to private creditors and investors involved in the construction of Benban Solar Park.

In Egypt, funds have already been allocated for 29 projects in the field of solar power with a total capacity of 1.5 GW and a total value of $1.8 billion. It is expected that in 2018 the country will join the "gigawatt club" - that is, 1 GW of installed solar capacity will be commissioned. Overall, the global market is expected to reach 606 GW of newly installed solar panels between now and 2022.

Dutch to build world's first offshore solar power plant

A consortium of Dutch companies is piloting a solar power plant drifting in the North Sea in the next three years using standard solar panels. The consortium expects that the station on the high seas will be 15% more efficient than existing installations, writes in early 2018 PV Magazine^[7].

Dutch start-up Oceans of Energy, which specializes in developing floating systems to produce renewable electricity, has teamed up with five major companies to build the world's first solar power plant to drift on the high seas. "Such power plants are already operating on water bodies in the mainland of different countries. But no one built them at sea - this is an extremely difficult task. We have to deal with huge waves and other destructive forces of nature. However, we are convinced that by combining our knowledge and experience, we will cope with this project, "said Allard van Hoeken, head of Oceans of Energy

.

According to preliminary calculations, a floating power plant will be 15% more efficient than existing installations. The Center for Research power engineering specialists Netherlands(ECN) will choose the most suitable solar modules. Its experts believe that it is possible to use standard solar panels for the project, which also work on terrestrial solar stations. "Let's see how they behave in seawater and in adverse weather conditions," said ECN spokesman Ian Kroon.

Representatives of the consortium emphasize that a floating solar power plant can be installed directly between offshore wind turbines. There are calmer waves and all power lines have already been drawn. In the next three years, the consortium will work on a prototype with financial support from the Dutch state Enterprise Agency. And Utrecht University will provide the startup with its research materials.

Australia's solar costs have fallen 44% since 2012

Australia is one of the leaders in the number of rooftop solar panels. People found out that panels cut electricity bills and this turned into a real race: everyone is in a hurry to supply more and more solar cells. 2017 was a record for Australia in terms of the number of installed solar cells, writes Bloomberg^[8] of^[9].

This fascination with renewable energy has led people to actually start paying less for electricity. The plus for this was also the fact that the cost of electricity itself decreased. Since 2012, the cost of installing and operating solar panels has fallen by almost half.

In 2017, private homeowners and businesses installed panels with a total capacity of 1.05 GW in the country. This assessment is given by the department responsible for clean power issues in the country. Authorities say it's a record all-time high. At the beginning of this decade, it is reported that the growth of renewable power was associated with favorable subsidies and tax proposals, but the growth of 2017 is different: the inhabitants of the country decided in this way to fight against rising electricity tariffs, and the movement became massive.

Australia is projected by BNEF to be the world leader in solar panel adoption. By 2040, 25% of the country's electricity needs will be covered by rooftop solar panels. This will be possible due to the fact that today the payback period for such solutions has been reduced to the minimum since 2012. So far, this does not mean that Australia's traditional power plants are a thing of the past, but people are becoming freer about providing themselves with electricity.

2017

South Korea to increase solar generation by 5 times by 2030

South Korea's Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy unveiled the government's plan to increase solar generation fivefold by 2030^[10].

The announcement came shortly after President Moon Jae-in, who was elected this year, pledged to end government support for the construction of new nuclear power plants and take a course toward clean sources of electricity. The government has already called off construction of six nuclear reactors in South Korea.

In total, the country plans to receive by 2030 a fifth of the electricity generated from renewable sources. Last year, this figure was 7%. To do this, it is planned to add 30.8 GW of solar capacity and 16.5 GW of wind to the appointed date. The extra energy will come from the biggest projects as well as private households and small businesses, Minister Pike Ungyu said. "We will fundamentally change the path of renewable power development, creating conditions under which citizens can easily take part in renewable energy trade," he said.

This means that by 2022, about 1 in 30 households should be equipped with solar panels, according to Clean Technica.

Still, so far South Korea ranks fifth in the world in atomic energy use. There are 24 operating reactors in the country, providing approximately a third of the country's electricity needs.

BP invested $200 million in solar power

Lightsource BP will soon begin implementing new projects in the USA, India, Europe and the Middle East. She will also hire 8,000 people to work in the field of renewable power, including at wind farms in the United States and in the production of biofuels in Brazil, writes the Guardian at the end of 2017.

BP paid $200 million to get a 43% stake in Europe's largest solar panel company. The firm will be renamed Lightsource BP, and BP representatives will receive two seats on the board. Thus, BP returned to the business, which left 6 years ago, considering it unprofitable. The investment in London-based Lightsource was a turning point for the British oil company, which after rebranding in 2000 became Beyond Petroleum, but ten years later curtailed all its renewable power initiatives. "We are happy to work with solar energy again, but already at a fundamentally new level," said BP CEO Robert Dudley.

Chile becomes hub of cheap renewable power

In five years, Chile has evolved from an energy-importing country plagued by speculation and inflated tariffs to one of the largest solar producers. However, the government will have to think about a long-term strategy for the development of renewable power, ^[11] writes in December 2017 Financial Times^[12].

Chile's Atacama Desert is one of the sunniest and driest places on the planet. It is logical that it was there that they decided to build the largest solar power plant in Latin America, El Romero. Giant solar panels cover 280 hectares of area. Its peak capacity of 246 MW and a year the power plant generates 493 GWh of energy - enough to provide electricity to 240,000 homes.

Surprisingly, only five years ago, Chile barely used renewable energy. The country was dependent on energy-supplying neighbors who inflated prices and made Chileans suffer exorbitant electricity bills. However, it was the lack of fossil fuels that led to a serious flow of investments in renewable sources, especially in solar power.

Chile now produces virtually the cheapest solar power in the world. The companies hope the country will become "Saudi Arabia for Latin America." Chile has already joined Mexico and Brazil in the top ten renewable power producing countries, and is now set to lead the way in switching to "clean" energy in Latin America.

"Michelle

Bachelet's government has made a quiet revolution," says sociologist Eugenio Tironi. "Its merit in the transition to renewable energy sources is difficult to overestimate, and this will determine the factor in the country's development for many years to come."

Now that Chile's oligopolistic energy market is open to competition, the government has set a new goal: by 2025, 20% of the country's total energy must come from renewable sources. And by 2040, Chile is going to completely switch to "clean" power. Even to experts, this does not seem utopia, since the country's solar power plants, with current technologies, produce twice as cheap electricity as coal-fired power plants. Solar prices fell 75%, hitting a record 2.148 cents per kilowatt hour.

Manufacturing companies face another challenge: Too cheap electricity doesn't make much profit, and maintaining and replacing solar panels isn't cheap. "The government will have to build long-term strategies so that the miracle does not become a nightmare," said Jose Ignacio Escobar, CEO of the Spanish conglomerate Acciona.

Google is switching completely to solar and wind energy

The company became the world's largest corporate buyer of renewable energy, reaching a total capacity of 3 GW. Google's total investment in clean power reached $3.5 billion,^[13] writes in November 2017^[14]

Google is officially switching to 100% solar and wind power. The company signed a contract with three wind farms: Avangrid in South Dakota, EDF in Iowa and GRDA in Oklahoma, which have a combined capacity of 535 MW. Now Google offices around the world will consume 3 GW of renewable energy.

The company's total investments in the energy sector reached $3.5 billion, and 2/3 of them are in facilities in the United States. Such interest in "clean" sources is primarily associated with a drop in the cost of solar and wind energy by 60-80% in recent years.

For the first time, Google signed a partnership agreement with a 114 MW solar farm in Iowa back in 2010. By November 2016, the company was already involved in 20 renewable power projects. It was going to completely switch to solar and wind energy back in December 2016. Google is now the world's largest corporate buyer of renewable energy.

In Iran, villages sell electricity to the state

In the fall of 2017, there are more than 200 "green" villages in the IRI. The number is expected to reach 300 by spring 2018. "Iran Today Reports" that in some settlements of the country, solar panels have been standing for ten years. It is noted that the largest volumes of energy from the sun are produced in the provinces of Kerman, Khuzestan and Lurestan^[15].

Initially, the emergence of alternative energy sources in the villages of Iran was due to the impossibility of delivering electricity to them from cities. Now they sell their own energy to the Ministry of Energy of the IRI. It is planned to develop legislative norms according to which electricity purchases in villages will become constant.

By 2030, Iran expects to produce 7,500 MW of "green" energy, today this figure is only 350 MW. However, the country has good prospects for the development of solar power, because in 2/3 of the territory the sun shines 300 days a year.

Dubai launches world's largest solar power plant

In Dubai, the project of the world's largest solar power plant was launched in September 2017. It is reported by The National. The height of the "solar collector" - a structure for capturing reflected sunlight - will be 260 meters.

The station will be the highest existing at the moment. According to the publication, its capacity will be 700 megawatts. The construction will be carried out by contractors from China and Saudi Arabia. By 2030, Dubai plans to cover 25% of its energy needs from renewable sources, by 2050 - 75%.

IKEA begins selling solar power plants for home

IKEA is launching sales of solar power plants for private homes in its stores in Britain. This was reported in the summer of 2017 by Wired. To make batteries, the retailer used the capacity of the largest British manufacturer Solarcentury.

The cost of the panels will start from 3 thousand pounds. For comparison, the nearest competitor of the furniture giant Tesla, battery prices start at 5 thousand pounds. Home solar plants will allow their owners to save up to £560 each year, IKEA has assured.

The shift to renewable energy is an important part of the Swedish retailer's environmental strategy. By 2020, the company plans to compare the amount of energy consumed and generated. Already, more than 700 thousand solar panels have been installed on hypermarkets and other IKEA buildings.

Bus stops in Yerevan equipped with solar panels

In early summer, solar panels appeared at two bus stops in Yerevan. They were installed within the framework of the European Union pilot program "Energy Efficiency Days in Armenia." With the help of energy generated by solar plants, residents of the capital can charge mobile phones, tablets and other digital devices for free - you only need to have a USB cable with you. During the day, solar panels can charge 24 phones, 5 watts are spent on charging one device.^[16]

The installation of each heliopanel cost 6 thousand euros, including rent for a year, repairs and technical equipment. It is planned that solar panels will work at public transport stops for about a year, after which they will be transferred to schools and kindergartens.

According to Petr Svitalsky, head of the EU delegation to Armenia, the EU is interested in the development of alternative power in the country. He called the stop with heliopanels "the solar stop of the European Union."

There is a lot of sun in Armenia. For a country that does not have oil, natural gas or coal, this is an important resource. You need to use this natural wealth. With cheap energy, you can be more independent. The EU decided to provide the country with long-term assistance to develop energy efficiency. The transition to solar energy in Armenia is a matter of the future, but we need to invest in the sphere today, "Svitalsky stressed, adding that in recent years the EU has allocated Armenia about 30 million euros for the implementation of energy programs.

Solar Power Potential

The American University of Armenia has been studying the potential of solar energy in the country for 20 years. Monitoring stations have been installed on the roof of the AUA building in Yerevan. According to the deputy director of the AUA Engineering Research Center Artak Hambarian, they collect data on solar flows. This, in turn, helps to determine the potential power for a specific area, as well as to assess the payback of the system and the effectiveness of investments in solar power.

As he explained, Yerevan has about 2700 hours of sunshine a year (8760 hours a year in total), while the capital consumes half of the energy produced in the country. On average, 1 kW/h per year per 1720 square meter of horizontal surface (for comparison, in Europe - 1000 kW/h). Most of the sunshine is on the plains. The most favorable conditions for maximum use of the sun's energy are in highlands: there is discharged air and a relatively low temperature. The record was recorded in the basin of Lake Sevan, located at an altitude of 1900 m - here the duration of sunshine is 2800 hours a year. According to experts, by transforming these reserves, a significant part of the population can be provided with energy.

At the end of July, Deputy Minister of Energy Infrastructures and Natural Resources of Armenia Hayk Harutyunyan presented a "solar map" of Armenia - it shows the potential of solar power in the country.

The map indicates the optimal territories for the development of solar power. It demonstrates what resources we have for the production of solar energy, and how many kilowatts can be produced in a particular area, "Harutyunyan explained.

As he added, the use of solar energy is growing in the country every year. So, over the past year (summer 2016 - summer 2017), the use of new sources has grown 15 times. According to him, the growth in consumption is also evidenced by the emergence of companies that offer services for the production and installation of heliopanels.

The largest solar farm in the Middle East will appear in Iran

The solar farm will be located near the cities of Kerman and Bam. Accordingto Iran Today, citing the Iranian Ministry of Energy, the power plant will become the largest in the Middle East. The construction has already been launched after the grand opening with the participation of the head of the Ministry of Energy of the Republic Hamid Chitchian. The investment in the construction of a solar farm will amount to $140 million .

Another similar project - a solar power plant - was built in 7 months in another area of ​ ​ the republic - near Isfahan. Its executors were the Gadir electric power company and the Greek engineering company Mark. According to experts, natural fuel in Iran is wasted inefficiently due to the presence of state subsidies. The construction of a future solar farm is designed to establish energy saving in the country.

According to the plan for the development of the energy sector, by 2020 the republic plans to produce 5,000 MW of energy from renewable sources. Moreover, 4000 MW - due to wind farms. So far, only 141 MW of energy of this type is generated in the country.

Solar panels for own generation of individual objects

Its own generating capacity - in fact, small power plants - has long been present at a large number of facilities. First of all, these are, of course, sites remote from centralized power supply networks - construction, geological exploration, field, tourist, etc. But there are also a large number of situations when their own generating capacities are relevant in territories with developed infrastructure, including electric networks.

Sometimes the presence of solutions of their own generation is the requirement of standards for civil defense and emergencies, prescribing the presence of such solutions at facilities that cannot be left without electricity in any situation. Centralized power supply for any reason - from natural disaster to man-made accidents - can be abyss, and without energy, even hospitals, maternity hospitals, emergency services, shelters, etc. cannot remain for a short time. Sometimes the availability of own generation capacities is a business requirement. Any business center left without electricity will suffer losses, but there are many sites where power outages: data centers, communication nodes, etc. Almost all of the listed facilities have diesel generators, the launch of which in emergency conditions will provide electricity to intensive care units, servers, newborn boxes and other infrastructure elements. If in areas remote from civilization, the power of their own generation is constantly loaded, in cities they are most often used as backup power supplies in case of emergencies, but there is another option - when they are used to reduce electricity costs. In some cases, this approach is economically justified.

Often in an infrastructure - deployed or created - there are elements that can be forced to turn generators at the same time. The simplest example is boiler houses, which create a sufficient amount of water and steam flows that can be used to rotate generators. Such solutions, capable of providing electricity in addition to heat, are also called cogeneration systems. Solutions for their own generation do not boil down to the mentioned "diesels" and "dual-use" boiler houses, capable of supplying electricity at the same time as heating. Sometimes, for example, generators spin sewage and this is an example of how their own generation can be "green."

Increasingly, solar panels are used in proprietary generation solutions. The most expressive example is the Apple campus (ISpaceship (Apple office)), the roof of which is covered with solar panels that generate so much energy that both the Apple office itself and even for sale are enough. But this example is not the only one - solar panels are more and more actively used in student campuses, summer cottages and even in individual offices and dwellings. Solutions deployed on the scale of a summer cottage, apartment, house or residential quarter are referred to as microgeneration. Of course, the power of each individual such solution is small, but there are a lot of them and their number increases, respectively, the power generated by them increases. Microgeneration systems are beginning to compete with traditional power plants with which they successfully coexist.

2016

Tesla home batteries

In the fall of 2016, solar panels and batteries for the home were presented by the American company Tesla. The panels she developed are made of smooth glass and can accumulate up to 14 kilowatt-hours.

Kazakhstan

In 2016, electricity generation from solar panels increased by one third and reached a capacity of 928 million kWh. And the newly introduced stations increased the load by an average of 18% - to 296 MW. Assessments of experts from the Finprom information and analytical center are cited by the republican newspaper Liter.

The level of electricity production from solar panels is just above 1%. According to the presidential program, 106 renewable electricity facilities will be commissioned in Kazakhstan by 2020, their total capacity will be 3054.55 MW. In the next two years, 18 such stations will work. 299 million tenge was allocated from the budget for these purposes last year.

Among the new facilities for connecting to alternative electricity is a livestock complex in the Almaty region. Wind-solar generators were installed in Kyzylorda and Mangistau regions.

China leads the way in solar power generation

China ranked first in the world in terms of the amount of energy generated by solar power plants, reports Reuters citing the power engineering specialists country's National Administration. In 2016, Chinese solar generation was 66.2 terawatt-hours, according to the authority. At the same time, the capacity of power plants for the year increased by 34.54 gigawatt to 77.42 gigawatt^[17]

China has a program to phase out the consumption of fuel made from minerals. According to this document, the share of alternative power in the total volume of energy generation in the country should be 20 percent by 2030. In the present, this figure is 11 percent, of which one percentage point is solar power.

The current program provides for the active development of solar, wind and water power plants. The country intends to invest 2.5 trillion yuan (363.7 billion) in the development of alternative power dollars 2020. In particular, the combined capacity of solar power plants is planned to increase by 110 gigawatts by 2020.

In 2016, active construction of solar power plants was carried out in the provinces of Shandong, Xinjiang and Henan. The provinces of Xinjiang, Gansu, Qinghai and Inner Mongolia led in terms of the total capacity of solar power plants in China at the end of last year.

It should be noted that in terms of the total capacity of solar power plants, China ranks first in the world over the past two years. Chinese solar power plants had a capacity of 43.5 gigawatts in 2015, according to the International Energy Organization. Germany In the runner-up, the figure was 39.7 gigawatts and Japan in, 34.4 gigawatts.

At the same time, in terms of the amount of solar energy generated per capita, China is not even among the top ten countries. For China, the figure in 2015 was 32 watts per person. In terms of solar energy per capita, the first place was occupied by Germany with 491 watts, the second - Italy with 308 watts, and the third - Belgium with 287 watts.

GlobalData

According to the^[18] according to the GlobalData consulting^[19] In 2016, solar power plants with a total capacity of about 70 gigawatts were installed in the world. Although these are only preliminary figures, it seems that we are talking about a very serious breakthrough. If the data are correct, then last year solar power in absolute figures increased almost 1.5 times compared to 2015. Estimates of other analytical groups are even more optimistic - they call the numbers up to 76 gigawatts for 2016. If they are right, SESs around the world have increased their capacity by a third in just 12 months. At the same time, helioenergy for the first time exceeded the total power capacity of a country such as Russia. On average, the input rate was close to one megawatt every 450 seconds.

At the end of 2015, there were approximately 225 gigawatts of solar power plants in the world. The figure reached 294.69 gigawatts at the end of 2016, according to GlobalData. The distribution of these capacities by country has not yet been accurately calculated. It is only clear that China is leading in the field of new SES, as usual. In the first quarter of 2016 alone, 7.14 gigawatts were installed there (more megawatts for every 20 minutes). Of these, a little less than a gigawatt fell on distributed photocells (on the roofs of households and administrative buildings), and the rest on large SES. For comparison, it can be pointed out that the United States installed only 4.1 gigawatts^[20] in the third quarter of 2016^[21].

The total production of all existing solar power plants in the world is practically nowhere to be brought together due to the difficulty of maintaining such statistics. In places where SES are placed deliberately (in deserts and arid areas), they give approximately 2,200 kilowatt hours per year per kilowatt of installed capacity. However, in some cases, solar panels are installed in areas with a humid climate, on the roofs of houses with an imperfect angle in relation to the Sun, and in other places where they bring returns far from optimal. Under such conditions, photocells can produce only 1000 kilowatt hours per year per kilowatt of power.

See also

• Russian economy
• Energy - National Technology Initiative (NTI)
• Alternative power
• Power in Russia
• Solar Power (Global Market)
• Wind Power and Wind Power Plants (Russia and the World)
• Nuclear Power. Facts and Myths
• Smart Grid
• Internet Energy (MicroGrid) Small Distributed power
• Electric generators (Russian market)

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