Solar Photovoltaic
Solar Photovoltaic (PV) systems use an array of cells to convert solar radiation into direct current (DC) electricity. In utility-scale generation, an inverter is used to convert the DC power to AC for evacuation into the power grid.
Driven by steady cost decreases, global solar PV capacity has grown exponentially over the last decade from around 1GW in 1998 to 15GW in 2008. With further technology improvements and expanded supply driving PV costs down to grid parity, global capacity is expected to hit 280GW by 2020, making it the world’s fastest growing energy technology.
There are a variety of solar PV cell technologies, including crystalline and thin-film, which differ in design, efficiency and cost. Astonfield has strategic relationships with top-tier technical providers across each key technology to provide the best solution for a given location.
Benefits of Solar PV:
- Installations have a 25+ year useful life with minimal operations/maintenance requirements
- Historical solar radiation data allow for highly accurate production forecasts
- Flexibility to locate adjacent to distributed populations and scalability to respond to demand
- Short construction and commissioning time adds incremental grid capacity quickly
- Zero fuel requirements nor emissions
Technology Partners
Given the rapid development of the solar PV supply chain, Astonfield has chosen to pursue a multi-partner strategy for this modality, ensuring it is able to consistently deliver the highest quality, lowest cost PV technology. Astonfield’s chosen solar partners, like Belectric Technology and its affiliate Beck Energy, have built and innovated in today’s largest solar sectors in Europe and are focused on building the solar sectors of the future in key emerging markets like India.
