Territorial planning for photovoltaic power plants using an outranking approach and GIS

Abstract

In 2015 the Paris Agreement set the goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. To achieve these objectives, it is necessary to boost electricity generation coming from renewable energy sources, particularly solar energy. Finding areas that are suitable for solar farm development is crucial for the economic feasibility of these projects and the sustainable use of land. This research investigates how to identify optimal sites for the development of solar plants. A GIS-based approach combined with a Multi-Criteria Evaluation methodology is used to create a map which shows a ranking of areas with high potential for solar farm development. The GIS-based methodology is employed in the treatment of the legal and environmental criteria and sub-criteria to delimit the suitable locations. These locations are evaluated and ranked by order using the PROMETHEE (Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enrichment Evaluations). The importance of each criteria and sub-criteria is determined by an Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). In the Valencian Community the most discriminating criterion, when selecting the best locations, is the intensity of solar radiation, while temperature is the least discriminant. In terms of areas, the most suitable are located in the province of Alicante, while the least suitable are in the north of the Castellón province. It is also observed that the most appropriate locations are those that have greater solar radiation, and/or are at a lower altitude.