Floating solar plants generate 25 jobs for every MW installed

“UFFs (floating photovoltaic plants) only bring benefits, such as zero environmental impact, positive social impact of job creation and the issue of electricity, generating clean energy in an adequate way”. This is the analysis of lawyer Luiz Piauhylino Filho, partner-president of Sunlution.

According to him, the UFFs generate 25 direct jobs for each MW installed. “We now need to apply this technology on a large scale, and that is what we are trying to do in Brazil,” said Piauhylino Filho.

The executive commented that the Floating solar plants have countless many advantages. “The same solution that I have, eventually, on land or on a roof, will produce less energy than a module that I have on water, as the temperature causes the panel to produce more electricity”, he explained.

“Such plants can also reduce water evaporation by up to 70% in the covered area. This allows the reservoir to hold more water over a period of six months to a year”, highlighted the specialist.

According to Piauhylino Filho, this covered area reduces the effect of photosynthesis, thus reducing the proliferation of algae.

Sobradinho and Billings floating solar plant

During an interview with Canal Solar, the lawyer also commented on the projects that Sunlution is developing at the UFF (floating photovoltaic plant) in the Sobradinho reservoir (BA) and the pilot plant in the Billings reservoir (SP).

Regarding UFF in Sobradinho, he said that the company implemented an R&D (Research and Development) project, in partnership with Chesf (Companhia Hidrelétrica do São Francisco), which aimed to see the application of floating solar technology in parallel to a hydroelectric plant.

“When we implemented the first 1 MW stage, the reservoir only had a 6% water level. Today it is almost 90%. During this implementation period, the reservoir had a level variation of more than 11 meters”, emphasized Piauhylino.

“We are now starting the second stage, where we will install a 1,5 MW plant coupled with the existing 1 MW plant. It is an important project for Chesf, for the Eletrobras system and for Brazil, as it shows that it is viable to hybridize sources, especially hydroelectric power with floating solar generation, which will resolve that point that those who criticize solar and wind always say on the issue of intermittency. However, when you hybridize, you can solve this issue of energy and power generation.”

Regarding the pilot plant installed in the Billings reservoir – built with BYD solar panels – he highlighted that it is a pioneering project in São Paulo. "It was a success. So much so that it allowed Emae (Metropolitan Water and Energy Company) to extend this project to a commercial school”.

"The public call that was published in October shows the intention to apply this technology on a large scale, seeking new investors to propose business models to generate floating solar energy in the largest load center, which is São Paulo and its metropolitan region”, said Luiz Piauhylino, adding that this is a technology viable, correct and that will produce clean electricity in the large consumption centers in Brazil.

Record time

Sunlution's CEO also highlighted that this 100 kW pilot project was installed in record time. “We managed to build it in two and a half months. We are talking about almost 10.440 hectares of water depths spread across several municipalities in the state of SP. We showed that we achieved an efficiency project well above what we expected.”

“Billings promises to be a suitable location for floating solar generation in the state. Of course, we have the challenge of distributing this energy that will be produced on larger scales. However, we will certainly identify that region with distribution and transmission networks that can receive this energy that will be generated on a large scale”, he concluded.