PV Capacity Research Articles

PV systems integrated with commercial buildings for local and national peak load shaving in Poland

A reduction of demand for electrical power in peak periods, commonly called peak shaving, is beneficial for customers from the economic point of view. However, it is also of considerable importance for the National Power System operation in terms of grid stability. This research focuses on the issue of nationwide potential of peak shaving by PV installations in office buildings in Poland. It is assumed that this sector can play a significant role in decreasing the demand for peak power on a large scale. The modelling of office building load was conducted with the use of an Artificial Neural Network. The study took into consideration different tilt and orientation configurations of PV modules as well as their degradation. The impact of peak shaving on the National Power System was assessed on the basis of the monthly peak load balancing factor. The influence of PV installations on grid infrastructure was estimated based on changes in transformer lifetime. The research showed that the optimum PV capacity for an average office building was approximately 600–800 kWp with a south orientation and tilt angle of 30°. The highest peak shaving capacity on the country level is observed for PV systems with a south-east orientation. 273.75 MWp in PV capacity reduces the maximum national load by 200 MW in May. The analysed PV system producing electricity for self-consumption, can prolong the lifetime of the overloaded transformer connected to the office building by up to 36%.

Zero energy potential of photovoltaic direct-driven air conditioners with considering the load flexibility of air conditioners

The real-time energy matching between building load and PV generation is low in actual applications of photovoltaic direct-driven air conditioners (PVACs). The indoor thermal comfort temperature range (TCTR) can enhance the load flexibility of PVACs to improve the real-time zero energy probability. Therefore, a real-time zero-energy potential evaluation method with the adoption of TCTR for PVACs was proposed. The indoor temperatures are mainly determined by real-time PV generation, which minimizes the power taken from the grid and batteries. The indoor temperature, conditioned by PVACs under varying operating conditions, is predicted using machine learning models at a one-minute time resolution. The real-time energy matching performances of PVACs are evaluated by key indicators, including zero-energy probability, real-time zero-energy probability, complete overcooling rate, and complete overheating rate, for different climatic regions. With a fixed indoor setting temperature in summer, the real-time zero-energy probabilities in Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Beijing are 1.89%, 2.45%, and 2.11%, respectively. While adopting the TCTR with the similar PV capacity, the corresponding values in Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Beijing reach 53.13%, 49.48%, and 87.11%, respectively. In addition, the real-time zero-energy points frequently appear when large cooling demands are needed. Finally, an optimization of PV capacity is conducted. The optimal PV capacity was found to be at the point where seasonal PV generation is 1.3 times the dominant seasonal energy consumption. PVACs with TCTR can utilize the PV generation and load flexibility to the greatest extent and the evaluation method for PVACs is beneficial for designing a more practical and economical system.

Investigation of photovoltaic-hydrogen power system for a real house in Turkey: Hydrogen blending to natural gas effects on system design

In the study, the effects of hydrogen mixing studies at the rate of 20% to the natural gas system which is an ongoing study in Turkey, on the photovoltaic system (PV) is investigated using a real house consumption. Providing the annual electrical energy consumption (1936,83 kWh) and 20% of natural gas consumption (62,4 m3) of a real house with hydrogen is included in the study. A PV-hydrogen system is theoretically investigated to provide the energy required for hydrogen production from solar panels. Hydrogen blending effects on PV size, capacity usage, and carbon footprint are analyzed. Thus, the contribution was also made to the “green hydrogen” works and reduction of the carbon footprint of the house. It was found that the required hydrogen for electricity can be provided 52,5 m2 solar panel area and 14,28% increase in this area and installed power can provide an amount of hydrogen that need for 20% hydrogen blending to the natural gas system. The overall system capacity usage decreased when the system is used for 20% hydrogen blending to the natural gas system. The carbon footprint of the house was decreased by 67,5%. If the hydrogen has not been blended with 20% natural gas, this ratio would have been 59,2%.

Solar-Powered Thermoelectric-Based Cooling and Heating System for Building Applications: A Parametric Study

Thermoelectric (TE) based cooling and heating systems offer significant advantages over conventional vapor compression systems including no need for refrigeration or major moving parts, high controllability, and scalability. The purpose of the present study is to provide an energy and economic assessment of the performance of a TE-based radiant cooling and heating system for building applications. It is considered that TE modules are integrated in the ceiling to lower/increase the ceiling temperature through the Peltier effect during the hot/cold season to provide thermal comfort for the occupants via radiation and convection. The study explores the possibility of using rooftop PV panels to produce electricity required for the operation of TE modules. An actual office building located in Melbourne, FL, USA is considered for a test study, and the hourly cooling and heating loads of the building are calculated through building energy simulation in eQuest. Various operating conditions, including different input voltages and temperature gradient across TE modules, are considered, and the system is sized to properly address the year-around cooling/heating demand. It is shown that a nominal cooling capacity of 112.8 W and a nominal PV capacity of 31.35 W per unit area of the building is required to achieve the target goal when the system operates at the optimal condition. An economic analysis is also performed, and estimated cost, as well as potential savings, are calculated for each operating condition. The optimal operating condition with minimum cost is selected accordingly. The results demonstrated that the initial cost of the proposed system is considerably higher than conventional heating/cooling systems. However, the system offers other benefits that can potentially make it an attractive option for building cooling/heating applications.

Discussion on ammonia as one of the energy storage media of solar energy in China

Effectively mitigating the increasing energy demand sector emissions is seriously considered in China. Under the continuous motivation of the Chinese government, the cumulative installed solar PV capacity in China has occupied 32.63 % of the global in 2019. Unfortunately, a large amount of installed capacity is wasted due to the challenges of grid load and efficient energy storage. Ammonia production from renewable energy may solve the dilemma. This paper analyses the feasibility and potential of using ammonia as a potential low carbon energy storage medium and sustainable fuel. It is calculated that, in China, solar-based ammonia may contribute GHG emission reduction of 158.87 million tons CO2-eq. in traditional ammonia production industry, and only 45 % of the dessert area with PV system for solar-based ammonia production could meet the energy demand of fuel substitution, which would result in GHG emission reduction of 5347.93 million tons CO2-eq. in total. As an energy storage medium, liquid ammonia (NH3) actually packs in more hydrogen than liquid hydrogen (H2) per same volume and the ammonia infrastructure is quite mature in China current industries. Therefore, in order to make it economically viable, motivative policies on encouraging the development of solar-based ammonia are expected in China.

The coordinated optimal design of a PV-battery system with multiple types of PV arrays and batteries: A case study of power smoothing

To investigate the complementary characteristics of various PV arrays and batteries, a coordinated optimal design mathematical optimization approach for a PV-battery system with multi-type PV arrays and multi-type batteries under the smoothing scenario is proposed in this work, targeting at the minimum total cost of the whole system. By solving the proposed model, the optimal design scheme of the whole system, including the PV array types and capacities in the PV generation system, and the battery types and capacities in the battery energy storage system (BESS), can be obtained simultaneously. A case study of a PV-battery system under the smoothing scenario is adopted to verify and illustrate the feasibility and effectiveness of this proposed method. The influences of the multiple types of PV arrays and batteries on the PV-battery system are comprehensively analyzed and discussed. Results show that the minimum electricity curtailment rate of the system solely composed of PV arrays is 1.7%, and the corresponding total cost and power fluctuation ratios between this system and the system composed of PV array 4 and multiple types of batteries are 1:1.4 and 1:1.2, respectively. When the electricity curtailment rate is required to be lower than 1.7%, the utilization of multiple PV arrays and multiple batteries has an advantage in the economy, fluctuation, and curtailment of the PV-battery system. The proposed method in this work can provide effective guidance for the capacity configuration of PV-battery systems.

The Investability of PV Systems under Descending Feed-In Tariffs: Taiwan Case

The Taiwanese government has set an energy transition roadmap of 20% renewable energy supply by 2025, including a 20 GW installed PV capacity target, composed of 8 GW rooftop and 12 GW ground-mounted systems. The main trend of feed-in tariffs is downwards, having fallen by 50% over a ten-year period. Predicting the future ten-year equity internal rate of return (IRR) in this study, we examine the investability of PV systems in Taiwan when subsidies and investment costs descend. We have found that the projected subsidies scheme favours investment in small-sized PV systems. Unless the investment costs of medium-sized PV systems fall or subsidies rise over the next decade, investing in medium-sized PV systems will be less attractive. Nonlinear and linear degradation causes slight IRR differences when using higher-reliability modules.

Analysis of technology diffusion policies for renewable energy. The case of the Italian solar photovoltaic sector

The scope of the work is to depict a solid framework to interpret the capacity development of solar PV in Italy. To this aim the pivotal roles of public incentives is addressed and a vis a vis analysis of the regulatory framework and corresponding quantitative data is provided. The Italian regulatory framework did not provide an adequate focus on operational requirements for developing solar PV and allowed the speculative behavior of many investors. This is demonstrated by the correlation index between installed capacity and level of incentive equal to 0.988. Additionally, LCOE is calculated and from 2009 onward it is half of the average incentive level. Furthermore, the role of “followers” assumed by large power generators in the first phase of the PV development determined the absence of an industrial leadership. Oppositely, in a second phase, large utilities became more active on the PV market since they realized the impact on power market price. The linear correlation index between market price and PV capacity is found to be equal to −0.68, therefore price decreases at the increase of PV installed capacity and this is detrimental for large power utilities, thus they were pushed to be active in the PV sector.

АНАЛІЗ МОЖЛИВОСТІ ВИКОРИСТАННЯ ВОДНЕВИХ ТЕХНОЛОГІЙ ДЛЯ КОМПЕНСАЦІЇ НЕСТАБІЛЬНОСТІ НЕГАРАНТОВАНИХ ДЖЕРЕЛ ЕНЕРГІЇ

Nowadays, there is an increase in the installed capacity of solar (mainly) and wind energy, which requires additional balancing reserves and requires the improvement of existing and development of new balancing methods. If at the end of 2018 the total capacity of PV and WPP was 1.7 GW (excluding the occupied territories), then at the end of 2020 it increased to 8 GW (including PV of households). Thus, the simultaneous influence of two reinforcing factors affected – a decrease in available control volumes at TPPs and an increase in the need for shunting generation due to increasing uneven daily consumption schedule and increasing volumes of stochastic generation from RES, namely unsecured power stations – PV and WPP. As a result, this created a problem of shortage of shunting generation and led to the need to build new high-shunting capacity, such as using hydrogen technology. Therefore, the article analyzes the problems of electricity that can be solved through the use of hydrogen technologies. The preconditions of occurrence of these problems are investigated and the ways of their overcoming are offered. Many developed countries, such as the United States and China, have a positive experience of using hydrogen technology as a source of electricity. Ukraine has adopted a Roadmap for the development of hydrogen energy for the period up to 2035 to ensure the use of hydrogen as an environmentally friendly energy source. Therefore, the article discusses in detail the methods of obtaining hydrogen fuel. The variety of methods for producing hydrogen is one of the main advantages of hydrogen energy, as it increases energy security and reduces dependence on certain types of raw materials. These include: steam conversion of methane and natural gas, coal gasification, water electrolysis, pyrolysis, partial oxidation, biotechnology. The article proposes a schematic diagram of a combined power plant of low power, containing a battery of fuel cells, wind turbine, cell, receiver. This installation can be used as an autonomous power source.

Preliminary investigation on pilot-scale photovoltaic-driven cold storage with ice thermal storage based on vapor compression refrigeration cycle

This work built a PV driven cold storage with ice thermal storage based on vapor compression refrigeration, where the compressor power was 4.41 kW. The system was designed in two modes of driving by utility electricity or PV array, and was expected to operate continuously via cascade evaporation in the cold storage. The hourly and daily performance was analyzed and compared between the two modes. The results indicate that the system driven by the stable utility electricity obtains the hourly refrigeration and system coefficient of performance (COP) between 1.02–5.73 and 0.85–4.58, respectively. The daily average refrigeration COP is between 2.75 and 3.02, and the daily average system COP is between 2.27 and 2.46; the highest daily cumulative ice mass reaches 178.45 kg. For the system driven by the PV array, the most daily ice mass of 144.10 kg is obtained with the PV capacity of 5.4 kW and the highest cumulative solar insolation of 20.41 MJ/m2, of which the daily refrigeration and system COP are 1.33 and 0.19, respectively. The characteristics of the ice thermal storage gives that the stored ice of 88.5 kg could sustain the cold storage temperature below 5 °C for about 11 h. Results show a positive trend indicating that this system could be a viable alternative for developing chain logistics service.

Analysis of PV Subsidy Schemes, Installed Capacity and Their Electricity Generation in Japan

Solar PV capacity growth in Japan has been facilitated by a number of government schemes that have been implemented since 1994. Publicly available capacity data are provided by a number of agencies and organisations at various resolutions and at different stages within these schemes. This study provides a comprehensive review of solar PV data sources in Japan between 1994 and 2019, as well as an introduction to the subsidy schemes and organisations involved in scheme management and data collection in Japan. As a result, the authors produced their own dataset of installed capacities and generation across time for the various regions. Lastly, this study provides insights and recommendations to policy makers regarding opportunities for improving the accessibility and quality of data from a user perspective and to enhance Japan’s presence in international research.

Comments: Growth in Battery Storage Sparks Chase for Metals

Natural gas is considered the fossil fuel to facilitate the transition from hydrocarbons to lower-emissions energy sources such as renewables. Wind and solar projects factor significantly into major international oil and gas companies’ goals of achieving net-zero emissions in the future. For example, both BP and Royal Dutch Shell intend to reach net zero by 2050. The International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts total installed wind and solar PV capacity is on course to surpass natural gas in 2023 and coal in 2024. This represents progress toward the achievement of the 2050 goals. However, wind, solar, and hydropower, which together account for about 90% of all renewable-electricity generation, are largely dependent on variable weather conditions. And the variability in weather translates to an undesired variability in availability and reliability. For wider adoption, utility-scale batteries are needed to store energy for use when a light breeze barely whispers, or the skies are cloudy. Battery-storage projects are not a new concept, but their recent growth is notable. Although California is the global leader in the deployment of high-capacity batteries, news from other parts of the world offers indicators of progress. In 2020, global installed energy-storage capacity totaled 173.6 GW, including pumped-hydroelectric, compressed-air, advanced battery-energy, flywheel-energy, thermal-energy, and hydrogen-energy storage systems. The US had 0.74 GW of rated-power battery-storage projects based on lead-acid, lithium-ion, nickel-based, and sodium-based batteries. A Tesla subsidiary, Gambit Energy Storage LLC, is currently constructing a 100-MW+ battery-storage facility in Angleton, Texas, about 40 miles south of Houston. It is expected to become operational 1 June. Elon Musk (best known for his Tesla electric vehicles and SpaceX) launched a 100-MW lithium-ion battery project in South Australia in 2017 adjacent to a wind farm. Soon to become a “hot(ter)” commodity will be the lithium, rare earths, and other minerals needed to build the batteries. The global lithium and cobalt markets rallied in January and February in response to the resurgence of demand for electric vehicles (EV) in Europe. Last year, sales in battery EVs and plug-in-hybrid EVs in Europe outpaced those in China. Adamas Intelligence reported that the second half of 2020 saw a global 205% increase in battery cobalt deployed, a 192% increase in battery lithium deployed, and a 135% increase in battery nickel deployed vs. the second half of 2019. Investors and companies are chasing this potentially lucrative sector. Startup DeepGreen Metals, whose partners include Maersk and Allseas, aims to mine the deep sea for battery metals and on 4 March announced an agreement to merge with Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corp. to list on the Nasdaq. Cornish Lithium, holding rights to explore for lithium within geothermal waters in areas off the north and south coasts of Cornwall, UK, recently signed on MarineSpace to help it begin its desk-based exploration program to identify potential geological targets for later research. Physical exploration work is not expected for at least 4 years.

Study on matching characteristics of photovoltaic disturbance and refrigeration compressor in solar photovoltaic direct-drive air conditioning system

This paper presents a 3 HP solar direct-drive photovoltaic air conditioning system which operates without batteries, ice thermal storage is used to store solar energy. The refrigeration compressor will suffer from loss of power even cannot startup or shut down if the PV power generation suddenly fluctuates. In the case of the solar radiation fluctuations to keep the system running continuously and steadily, that requires a proper system design to match the power consumption of solar air conditioning system with a proper PV capacity, matching an adaptive controller and a suited compressor simultaneously. Solar air conditioners with different capacity of PV panel, with and without MPPT controller and different types compressors were built and tested outdoors to experimentally investigate the matching characteristics of photovoltaic disturbance and refrigeration compressor. The experimental results of the system with a variable speed compressor and a MPPT controller have shown good ice-making performance and reliable operation as well as a great improvement in the available solar energy. Finally, the highest system COP reached 0.289 when the cumulative daily total radiation was 18.2 MJ/m2 in Kunming, China. The research work shows that the direct drive ice storage by solar photovoltaic system has a certain application prospect in the regions where the electricity is tight but requiring cooling.

Review of Multilevel Inverters for PV Energy System Applications

Over the last decade, energy demand from the power grid has increased significantly due to the increasing number of users and the emergence of high-power industries. This has led to a significant increase in global emissions with conventional energy generation. Therefore, the penetration of renewable energy resources into the power grid has increased significantly. Photovoltaic systems have become the most popular resources as their protentional is enormous, thus, the worldwide installed PV capacity has increased to more than 635 gigawatts (GW), covering approximately 2% of the global electricity demand. Power electronics are an essential part of photovoltaic generation; the drive for efficient power electronic converters is gaining more and more momentum. Presently, multilevel inverters (MLI) have become more attractive to researchers compared to two-level inverters due to their abilities to provide lower electromagnetic interference, higher efficiency, and larger DC link voltages. This paper reviews multilevel inverters based on their classifications, development, and challenges with practical recommendations in utilizing them in renewable energy systems. Moreover, PV systems with various maximum power point tracking (MPPT) methods have been extensively considered in this paper as well. The importance and the development of a modified multilevel inverter are also highlighted in this review. In general, this paper focuses on utilizing multilevel inverters for PV systems to motivate and guide society to focus on inventing an efficient and economical multilevel inverter that has the combined capabilities of these converters reported in the literature.

Molehills into mountains: Transitional pressures from household PV-battery adoption under flat retail and feed-in tariffs

With Australia's significant existing household PV capacity, decreasing battery costs may lead to widespread household PV-battery adoption. As the sizing of these systems are heavily influenced by retail tariffs, this paper analyses the effect of flat retail tariffs on households free to invest in PV battery systems. Using Perth, Australia for context, an open-source model is used to simulate household PV battery investments over a 20-year period. We find that flat usage and feed-in tariffs lead to distinct residual demand patterns as households' transition from PV-only to PV-battery systems. Qualitatively analysing these patterns from the bottom-up, we identify transitional tipping points that may challenge future electricity system management, market participation and energy policies. The continued use of flat tariffs incentivises PV-battery households to maximise self-consumption, which reduces annual grid-imports, increases annual grid-exports, and shifts residual demand towards winter. Diurnal and seasonal demand patterns continue to change as PV-battery households eventually become net-generators. Unmanaged, these bottom-up changes may complicate energy decarbonisation efforts within centralised electricity markets and suggest that policymakers should prepare for PV-battery households to play a more active role in the energy system.

Pooling the cable: A techno-economic feasibility study of integrating offshore floating photovoltaic solar technology within an offshore wind park

In this paper, a techno-economic analysis is performed to assess the feasibility of adding an offshore floating solar farm to an existing Dutch offshore wind farm in the North Sea, under the constraint of a certain fixed cable capacity. The specific capacity of the cable that connects the offshore park to the onshore grid is not fully used due to the limited capacity factor of the wind farm. The principle of cable pooling allows to add floating solar capacity. Using weather data it is found that adding solar capacity leads to forced curtailment due to the cable capacity, but this is quite limited as result of the anti-correlation of the solar and wind resource. For the economic analysis, different scenarios regarding subsidy measures are considered for the calculation of net present value and levelized cost of electricity. Also the optimum additional PV capacity for each scenario is computed. The results show that with higher cost per Wp, optimum PV capacity decreases, but more favourable subsidies lead to higher optimized PV capacities. As the aim of the paper is not limited to a case study a methodology is developed for generalization of the techno-economic analysis of a hybrid solar/wind park. In this generalization, the initial investment, system degradation, cable capacity, number of hours when each system is active, and energy price, are implemented to compute the optimum PV capacity regarding the net present value as an indicator for economic analysis of the project.

Decarbonizing Electricity in Indonesia: Opportunity in the Implementation of Rooftop Solar PV

Efforts to decarbonize the electricity generation system to mitigate the environmental impacts including climate change are done around the world. The world is in an act of transfer from fossil fuel to new and renewable energy. Indonesia is trying to achieve future energy mix target through penetration in technology and policies emphasize. Indonesia through its state-owned company, PT Pembangkitan Jawa Bali (PT PJB) has a huge potential for new and renewable energy, particularly rooftop solar photovoltaic. Indonesia solar PV capacity installation was only 0.04% on 2017 whilst theoretical solar potential production is around 207.9 GW (4.8 kWh/m2/day). This article results that utilization rooftop asset from PT PJB can produce 8.09 GWh/year of electricity and reduce carbon dioxide which parameter greenhouse gas emission from electricity around 8.81 tonCO2eq in accordance with comparisons from coal power plant.

The state of solar PV and performance analysis of different PV technologies grid-connected installations in Hungary

The first part of this paper assesses the state of solar PV in Hungary, considering available government support in terms of policies, targets, and the conducive environment for exploiting solar PV. The study further analyses a 15-year-old 9.6 kWp roof-mount grid-connected solar PV system whiles comparing its performance parameters with similar installations in the sub-region. Findings show that Hungary possesses a relatively high solar energy resource which has not been exploited as expected compared to most of the countries in the European sub-region. Hungary has in place the necessary policies and diverse incentives for the adaptation of renewable energy sources as required by the European Union. However, complexities in land acquisition and legal definitions of PV systems still exist. The installed solar PV capacity in Hungary as of 2018, is 790 MWp. The target of the Hungarian Renewable Action Plan is to have 14.65% of the electricity demand supplied by renewable energy sources by 2020. The experimental study shows that the total energy output from the 9.6 kWp system is 8838.95 kWh for the year of assessment. The energy outputs for the subsystems are 3761.98 kWh, 2608.88 kWh and 2468.10 kWh for ASE (pc-Si), DS2 (a-Si) and DS1 (a-Si) respectively. The annual sub-system efficiencies are 9.8%, 2.9% and 2.8% for ASE (pc-Si), DS2 (a-Si) and DS1 (a-Si) respectively. Thus, 42.6% of energy fed into the grid was from the ASE (pc-Si) system, 29.5% and 27.9% from the DS2 (a-Si), and DS1 (a-Si) respectively.

Comparative techno-economic assessment of integrated PV-SOFC and PV-Battery hybrid system for natural gas processing plants

Natural gas will remain among the leading sources of energy, at least for the next few decades. Further, it is necessary to make natural gas processing operation a cost-competitive, clean, and efficient energy source, and less dependent on the grid. A comparative investigation based on two case studies is presented in this paper for a natural gas processing plant; an integration of Photovoltaic panels with Battery Energy Storage System (PV-BESS) and an integration of Photovoltaic panels with Solid Oxide Fuel cell (PV–SOFC) technologies. The aim is to be more independent from the grid for efficient operations and to reduce the emissions by introducing renewable energy in gas processing operation plant.A techno-economic analysis is performed for both cases considering a PV capacity of 33.5 MW. The outcome of this study indicates that for 25 years of operation, the Levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) for PV-BESS is found to be 0.16 US$/kWh, and for PV-SOFC is 0.11 US$/kWh, which makes the PV-SOFC option more economical and feasible than PV-BESS. Besides, in the projected scenario where investment cost is expected to reduce, PV-SOFC’s IRR is 3% and has a positive NPV of 5 Million USD$ for an internal rate of 4%. Furthermore, the LCOE for PV-SOFC in this scenario is around 0.04 USD$ per kWh, which is still less than the LCOE of PV-BESS and less than the tariff set by the Qatari electric authority for bulk industries.

Monofacial and Bifacial Micro PV Installation as Element of Energy Transition—The Case of Poland

The several government subsidies available in Poland contributed to an increased interest in PV installations. Installed PV capacity increased from 100 MW in 2016 up to 2682.7 MW in July 2020. In 2019 alone, 104,000 microinstallations (up to 50 kWp) were installed in Poland. The paper determines the energy gain and the associated reduction of CO2 emissions for two types of solar installation located in Poland. The monofacial solar modules with a power of 5.04 kWp (located in Leki) and bifacial solar modules with a power of 6.1 kWp (located in Bydgoszcz). Both installations use mono-crystalline Si-based 1st generation PV cells. With comparable insolation, a bifacial installation produces approx. 10% (for high insolation) to 28% (for low insolation) more energy than a monofacial PV installation. Avoided annual CO2 emission in relation to the installation capacity ranges from 0.58 to 0.64 Mg/kWp for monofacial and from 0.68 to 0.74 Mg/kWp for bifacial and is on average approx. 16% higher for bifacial installations. Cost-benefit analyses were made. For different electricity prices, the NPV for monofacial and bifacial was determined.