There is a vast difference between the cost of generation VS the cost of building the infrastructure. We might save money on fuel, but will the overall build plus management, maintenance and future refurbishment costs make the solar power any cheaper. We don’t have rain for 6 months of the year and panels need to be clean. How well will the supply be maintained in the wet season. The simplistic view that a certain number of megawatts will power a number of homes based on average consumption is a furphy. Solar is only at peak capacity for a quarter of the day. Batteries in a pure solar powered system need to hold 3 times average load plus a reserve to prevent excessive discharge. The solar panels need to be able to generate enough to charge the battery bank and meet grid demand in 6 hours per day. Extrapolating that the solar panels need to be capable of generating abou 5 times the grid demand. A grid load of 10 Mw requires around 50 Mw of solar panels. These figures are basic estimates and requirements could vary especially when these solar farms are going to be affected by clouds in the wet and dust/smoke in the dry.
There is a vast difference between the cost of generation VS the cost of building the infrastructure. We might save money on fuel, but will the overall build plus management, maintenance and future refurbishment costs make the solar power any cheaper. We don’t have rain for 6 months of the year and panels need to be clean. How well will the supply be maintained in the wet season. The simplistic view that a certain number of megawatts will power a number of homes based on average consumption is a furphy. Solar is only at peak capacity for a quarter of the day. Batteries in a pure solar powered system need to hold 3 times average load plus a reserve to prevent excessive discharge. The solar panels need to be able to generate enough to charge the battery bank and meet grid demand in 6 hours per day. Extrapolating that the solar panels need to be capable of generating abou 5 times the grid demand. A grid load of 10 Mw requires around 50 Mw of solar panels. These figures are basic estimates and requirements could vary especially when these solar farms are going to be affected by clouds in the wet and dust/smoke in the dry.