Economic comparison of floating photovoltaic systems with tracking systems and active cooling in a Mediterranean water basin

Abstract

Floating Photovoltaic (FPV) modules are installed on water surface to reduce land use. This original solution, potentially deployable on hydropower and aquaculture basins as well, can benefit of enhanced cooling due to the proximity to water. Thanks to this natural effect, FPV modules can work at higher operating efficiencies than ground-based (GPV) modules. However, because of the relatively young age, FPV still requires higher installation costs than GPV. This study investigates the economic competitiveness of GPV and FPV in terms of energy performance and total costs. Different PV system solutions are economically evaluated on the basis of three key figures, namely the capital costs (CAPEX), the operation and maintenance costs (OPEX) and the power generation costs (LCOE). An economic ranking is created based on the comparative analysis of these three key figures.The crucial point in the proposed economic model is that the revenues resulting from the reduced evaporations are considered as well. Every year, indeed, a significant volume of water can be preserved thanks to the shading effect of FPV modules. This water can be used for various purposes, increasing the overall revenues of the FPV system. In addition, the present LCOE calculations also take into account the performance enhancements that could be achieved through the installation of active cooling systems.In light of the expected economy of scale, a sensitivity analysis of the LCOE is carried out to account potential reductions in the capital cost of FPVs. This is done by analyzing the energy and economic performance of various FPV designs on a water basin in Southern Italy. The results demonstrate that, reducing the CAPEX of the FPV by 30 %, a nearly 20 % reduction in LCOE can be obtained compared to the reference GPV system.