Written by our experts, our technical articles aim to deliver independent & valuable insights on challenges faced by wind & solar assets. We have gathered in this newsletter the best of our articles published in 2017. Stay tuned, more are to come in 2018. If you are interested in receiving our articles directly in your mail box, click here.
1. The five most common problems with solar panels
We manage 800 MW of sustainable energy assets for our clients, and we regularly see that production loss on solar assets is attributable to the panels. Problems with panels can result in a production loss of up to 20%, since a poorly-performing panel will affect the production of a whole string of panels. It is therefore very important to identify and resolve problems with panels as quickly as possible. Read >>
2. Blade’s leading edge erosion
As its name suggests, the leading edge is the blade’s part which enters first in contact with the wind. Therefore, it is naturally the most vulnerable part towards environment’s stress. Every wind turbine located in an environment that includes abrasive particles like rain, snow, hail, dust or insects is a lot more subject to erosion than a wind turbine located in a place where those factors are absent. Moreover, the turbine’s size has not stopped increasing. Read >>
3. Serrations or the art of reducing wind farm noise
The noise of a wind turbine is estimated to reach about 55 decibels being at its foot (a car is estimated to be 80 decibels). Though acoustic is still one of the big challenge for the industry and a main risk for projects under development. In some areas, due to the proximity with locals or their sensitivity, wind installations can be subjected to strong curtailment plans which aims to reduce the noise of the moving blades. Read >>
4. Solar PV: price & technology evolution
With the cost reduction battle carried out during the last 15 years (mainly due to the massive introduction of the Chinese solar products in the market), solar energy has now become a very competitive energy source. We estimate that prices have reduced by more than 90% over the last 15 years. As one of the core parts of a PV project, the photovoltaic modules represent between 45 and 55% of the overall costs of a solar project. Read >>
5. Strike actions in the energy sector: impacts on wind & solar farms
Started earlier in November strike movements called by several French grid operators (Enedis, RTE, EDF, GRDF) should continue in December and may have some consequences on wind & solar parks production. Strikes actions are conducted on a national level and consist in decoupling the substation from the electrical network. Read >>
