Survey on solar photovoltaic (PV) technology utilization at residential area at Kampar, Perak

Abstract

The tropical climate of Malaysia is conducive to the development of solar energy, yet the adoption of solar PV technology in the construction industry is relatively low. Thus, the purpose of this study is to identify the difficulties faced by home users when installing solar PV and to propose recommendations to encourage solar PV. This research was conducted on residential construction sites in Kampar. More than 100 questionnaires were administered physically and online but only 50 responded, which represents a 50% response rate. The respondents were selected purposively mainly among the clients, contractors, developers, and consultants. The data revealed that the major difficulties that the home users encountered in the installation of solar PV include lack of motivation and incentives, huge capital outlay, and inability to secure financial support for the solar PV. To install solar PV, the research found that there is a need to provide attractive loans and incentives, implement policy, educate the households, reduce fossil fuel subsidies, and others. Although this research has been carried out diligently, there are several limitations such as this research only focusing on residential construction projects, having a very small sample size, and this research only using one method for data collection.