What is a Floating Solar Plant and how does it work?

• Solar plants or solar farms can be either ground-mounted or set up on the surface of water bodies.
• A network of floating solar panels, or photovoltaics/floatovoltaics are mounted on a structure that is made to float on the surface of a water body, which could be a reservoir, lake, irrigation canal, or pond.
• Usually, a floating solar plant will have a floating system or pontoon, a mooring structure to prevent panels from moving freely in water and to keep it near the shore, a photovoltaic system to generate electricity using thermal energy, and an underwater cable to transfer the generated power to a substation.

Why in news?

• India’s largest floating solar power project, spanning over 600 acres, is now fully operational at Ramagundam in Peddapalli district of Telangana.
• NTPC declared Commercial Operation of the final part capacity of 20 MW out of 100 MW Ramagundam Floating Solar PV Project at Ramagundam, Telangana with effect from 1 July.

Rise of Floating Solar power technology

• As More and more countries are switching to eco-friendly methods of producing electricity to make their energy portfolio cleaner and greener to tackle climate change, Power generation technology using floating solar panels has proved to be an efficient and fast-growing approach toward clean energy, especially in countries where land is scarce.
• The first floating photovoltaic system was built in Japan in 2007. In 2008, the first commercial installation, though small in size, came up in California after which renewable technology was quickly adopted by other countries.
• According to a World Bank Group report, floating solar capacity grew from 70 MW of peak power in 2015 to 1,300 MW in 2018.  As of 2020, there were more than 300 floating solar installations worldwide.
• According to WEF, floating solar power grew more than a hundredfold in five years, reaching 2.6 gigawatts of installed capacity across 35 countries. If just 1% of the surface area of all human-made water bodies (which are easier to access and typically less ecologically sensitive than natural lakes) was covered by floating solar panels, it could generate 400 gigawatts –enough electricity to power 44 billion LED light bulbs for a year.
• Currently, the world’s largest floating solar farm is in Shandong, China. The plant generates 320 MW per hour.
• In 2021, Singapore unveiled a floating solar panel farm, spanning an area equivalent to 45 football fields. South Korea plans to build a massive floating solar farm in the province of North Jeolla. Its capacity, expected to be 1,200 MW, will be equivalent to about 0.9 per cent of the total capacity of the country’s electricity generation.
• Global research firm Wood Mackenzie has estimated that global demand for floating solar power will grow by 22% year-over-year on an average from 2019 through 2024.

How is India switching to Floating solar projects?

• In recent years, floating solar power plants have become part of India’s plans to achieve a national target of 100 GW solar capacity by 2022.
• India launched the National Solar Mission in 2010 to tap sources of renewable energy. The Government plans to establish a renewable energy capacity of 500 GW by 2030.
• According to a study done by TERI in association with the Energy Transmission Commission India programme, 2.7 MW capacity photovoltaic projects were in operation as of 2019, while over 1.7 GW were in various stages of development.
• The NTPC, with a target to produce 60 GW capacity through renewable sources by 2032, highlighted that it already commissioned 222 MW of floating solar projects, with another 40 MW in the construction stage.
•  So far, the NTPC has installed floating solar plants on reservoirs at Kayamkulam in Kerala (92 MW) and Simhadri in Andhra Pradesh (25 MW). The world’s largest floating 600 MW solar energy project is being constructed on the Omkareshwar dam in the Khandwa district of Madhya Pradesh, covering approximately 2000 hectares. Projects at Getalsud in Jharkhand, Rihand reservoir in UP, and Vaitarna in Maharashtra have also been cleared.

About Ramagundam Floating solar power project

• The project in Ramagundam, Telangana is the country’s largest floating solar power project built at a cost of Rs. 423 crore, the project is spread over 600 acres of the NTPC reservoir in Ramagundam.
• The 100-MW project uses advanced technology and environment-friendly features and was built through BHEL under a EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) contract. 
• The NTPC has claimed that the 100MW project will save 2000 million litres of water per annum, sufficient to meet the yearly water requirements of approximately 10,000 households.
• The Ministry of Power has said that approximately 32.5 lakh cubic meters per year of water evaporation can be avoided at Ramagundam while coal consumption of 1,65,000 tons can be avoided per year; and CO2 emission of 2,10,000 tons per year can be avoided.

Are Floating Solar panel farms more efficient?

• • As per an International Energy Agency (IEA) report, Solar power is the cheapest electricity in history.
  • According to a 2020 study by think tank The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), reservoirs cover 18,000 square kilometers in India and can generate 280 GW through floating solar panels.
  • Besides constraints pertaining to land, scientists feel that ground-mounted solar panels are unable to function at their full potential as they heat up. This is where floating solar technology has an edge.

• Some advantages of floating solar power projects include:

• Less use of Land: Installation of solar panels on land or rooftops increases land pressure. For countries where the population density is high and land sparse, ground-mounted panels are not favorable.

• On the other hand, floating solar farms don’t need land for installation. A solar farm can be set up on the surface of a water body which is otherwise not being utilized.

• Higher Efficiency: According to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, floating solar farms can be up to 15% more efficient than those on the ground due to the cooling effect of the water beneath panels.

• As a coolant, water maintains the temperature of solar panels which eventually prevents loss of energy due to higher temperatures. Since they are deployed on the water surface, it is convenient to clean and move the network in the direction of sunlight.

• Environment friendly: Floating solar farms, if designed and deployed appropriately, reduce the threat posed by climate change to water bodies. According to the WEF Report, Floating panels can offset climate change by 10 years.

• A floating solar farm that reduces wind speed and solar radiation by 10% across the entire lake could offset a decade of warming from climate change.
• Solar panels prevent the growth of algae in the water, which improves its quality.

Concerns related to Floating Solar panels

• Since the technology is relatively new, experts are worried about the long-term ecological impact on water ecosystems. Solar panels can block sunlight, which can affect aquatic life.

• The World Bank highlights some of the challenges in its report ‘Where Sun Meets Water’ such as the lack of a robust track record; uncertainty surrounding costs; uncertainty about predicting environmental impact; and the technical complexity of designing, building, and operating on and in water (especially electrical safety, anchoring and mooring issues, and operation and maintenance).

References:

1. https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/energy-and-environment/explained-harnessing-power-of-the-sun-through-floating-solar-plants/article65598790.ece
2. https://www.livemint.com/news/india/indias-largest-floating-solar-power-project-in-telangana-key-things-to-know-11657181192682.html
3. https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/telangana-floating-solar-plant-environment-ntpc-explained-8005585/