L R AS Published on Saturday 14 October 2023 - n° 461 - Categories:European countries, various sectors
Panels at 2,500 m altitude are more efficient than in the valleys
For five years, an experimental solar installation installed at an altitude of 2,500 metres in Switzerland has produced yields well above the Swiss average. Particularly during the winter half-year
(from October to March), electricity production was up to three-and-a-half times higher than at plants located at lower altitudes. Annual yields from south-facing panels differed considerably according to vertical inclination (30, 60 or 90 degrees) and panel type (mono or bifacial), but were systematically higher than average.
The average annual yield
1°) The average annual yield of a comparison system with mono-facial panels and a tilt of 20 to 30 degrees was 917 kilowatt hours per kilowatt of power (kWh/kW) from January 2018 to December 2022, slightly below the Swiss average of 956 kWh/kW.
2°) The experimental system with bifacial panels and a 60-degree tilt measured an annual average of 1,851 kWh/kW, i.e. twice as high.
3°) The other configurations were also well above average, ranging from 1,329 kWh/kW (for the 90-degree monofacial panel) to 1,703 kWh/kW (90-degree bifacial).
During the summer half-year: the Alpine test installation achieved 615 to 975 kWh/kW, the comparison installation 670 kWh/kW.
During the winter half-year: the comparison facility achieved 247 kWh/kW, while the test facility achieved 580 to 885 kWh/kW. This good performance could help hydroelectric plants that are less productive at this time of year due to low reservoir levels.
Photon of 11 October 2023
