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10.19.2010

Solar Power Reliability and Balance-of-System Designs

 

By Mike Fife, P.E., PhD, PV Powered Inc.   |   October 14, 2010   |  
Balance-of-system component providers can significantly reduce the levelized cost of energy by boosting device reliability.

Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA -- In order to compete more effectively with other energy sources, the solar industry is focused on decreasing the levelized cost of energy (LCOE), a term that refers to the price at which solar energy is valued taking into account all the lifetime costs of the solar power system. This includes the cost of the initial investment, the cost of capital, the cost of system operations and maintenance and repair costs. While there is much visibility on bringing down the purchase cost of solar cell technologies, the cost of maintenance and repairs represents the major variable cost over the lifetime of a photovoltaic (PV) system. In fact, although PV balance-of-system (BOS) components (inverters, trackers, junction boxes, combiners and transformers) represent only about 10 percent of system costs, they have historically been responsible for up to 70 percent of system failures.1,2,3,4 Fixed cost and downtime associated with these failures can have a significant negative impact on solar power economics.

1 comment:

  1. Installing solar panel is indeed a good investment. You do not only save with your electric bills, you also help in conserving energy. This is eco-friendly too and does not cause any pollution.

    ReplyDelete

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