Integration of Floating Photovoltaic Panels with an Italian Hydroelectric Power Plant

Abstract

The potential of applying a floating PV (FPV) system in an Italian context (namely, Cecita dam and Mucone hydroelectric power plants) is studied. The additional PV energy production, as well as the effect of non-evaporated water on the productivity of the hydropower plant, is analyzed by varying the basin surface coverage. The simulations highlight that the amount of additional hydroelectricity is quite small if compared to the non-FPV system, reaching about 3.56% for 25% basin surface coverage. However, the annual PV energy production is noticeable even at low coverage values. The expected gain in electricity production in the case of 25% basin surface coverage with the FPV plant rises to 391% of that of the actual hydropower plant. This gain becomes even larger if a vertical axis tracking system is installed and the increase is about 436%. The economic analysis confirms that the production costs (USD/kWh) of FPV systems are comparable to those of land-based PV (LBPV) plants, becoming smaller in the case that a tracking system is installed. In particular, the best solution is the one with 15% coverage of the lake. In this case, the levelized cost of electricity for the LBPVs is 0.030 USD/kWh and for the FVPs, with and without tracking, it is equal to 0.032 and 0.029 USD/kWh, respectively.