Over recent years, it has become more important to provide sustainable energy to households and business. However, a major issue with this is finding the space to set up and use the necessary equipment.

At NP Solar, our blog looks into the growing rise of floating solar and how it can benefit both domestic and commercial users.

About the System

Also known as FPV or floating photovoltaic, the use of floating solar panels has only started to emerge recently. With less land to place solar farms on, there needs to be a new way of providing the energy required across the globe. By placing solar panels onto water, many space issues are immediately resolved.

The system works by enabling solar panels to successfully float on top of a water body. This includes lakes, reservoirs and basins. Safe access is always put into place and this allows for easy repairs and maintenance to be carried out.

Large Scale Developments

The use of floating solar has grown massively in recent years, with several countries across the world installing them. It was at a California winery in the US where an FPV was installed for the first time in 2008. Since then, more countries have installed them including Japan which accounts for 80% of those being used up to date.

One of the largest installations currently in place is the Sungrow Huainan Solar Farm in China. This uses 166,000 floating panels to power around 15,000 homes.

The US has carried out further research into the benefits. Currently, solar panels account for 1% of the country’s energy, however, they could be responsible for around 10%.

Why People Are Interested

A huge advantage of floating solar panels is the space you can save on land. Rather than taking up valuable land, you can make use of wasted water bodies. As this technology develops, more people and companies will be able to take advantage.

To add to this, placing the panels on water results in higher performance. The cooling impact of water allows the panels to work at a faster pace, producing more energy.

What To Consider

There are however some aspects that need to be considered. As well as potentially being more expensive than a traditional installation, solar panels don’t work on each body of water. You need to make sure that you have an adequate space for the panels to go.

Find Out More

Our team are experts in floating solar and are always on hand to offer any guidance that you need. To find out more, please do not hesitate to get in contact with us.