Photovoltaic systems on existing water reservoirs could cover a large part of the world’s energy needs. Thousands of municipalities and more than 150 metropolises could even use them to cover their entire electricity needs. This was determined by a research team led by Yubin Jin from the Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen, China. If all reservoirs and reservoirs with an area of more than 0.01 km² were 30 percent covered with solar panels, this could generate around 9,400 TWh per year, the group writes. That would be more than 40 percent of the current global electricity demand. In addition, water loss could be reduced and the existing electricity infrastructure could be used in many places.
Immense potential
Floating photovoltaic power plants are not new, but comparatively few have been installed so far, most of them in China. The currently largest system in the Chinese province of Shandong is located on a reservoir and has an output of 320 MW. Together with a wind farm on land, the power plant generates around 550 GWh of electricity per year. The total installed capacity worldwide is 1.3 GW and is expected to reach 4.8 GW, writes the research team. But that doesn’t even come close to the potential. In order to determine this, the group claims to have used the latest data on existing reservoirs and modeling of the performance of solar systems. Has been published the study in the journal Nature Sustainability.
According to the analysis, by far the greatest potential for this type of power generation is in the USA. There are almost 26,000 reservoirs with a total area of 64,000 km². There alone, 1900 TWh per year could be generated with photovoltaics, followed by China with 1100 TWh per year. In Europe, Russia, Turkey, Spain and Sweden are particularly worthwhile destinations. Water-scarce countries such as South Africa, Egypt and Pakistan could also benefit disproportionately. Because many reservoirs and reservoirs are located near population centers, more than 6,200 municipalities in 124 states could cover their entire electricity needs through such systems, including 154 metropolitan areas with more than one million inhabitants, the study says.
A strong expansion of floating photovoltaics (FPV) would have a number of other advantages in addition to renewable energy. Primarily, immense amounts of water could be saved because evaporation is prevented. The team estimates that more than 100 km³ is at stake, almost as much as 300 million people use every year. Water retained in reservoirs would be used to generate electricity. Another advantage is that the infrastructure already exists, especially at reservoirs, to distribute large amounts of electricity. Furthermore, the areas are available and are not used for other purposes. However, FPV could also have negative consequences for ecosystems, which is why further research is needed, the team writes.
(my)
