Page 194 - Applied Photovoltaics

Chapter

10

GRID-CONNECTED

PHOTOVOLTAIC

SYSTEMS

10.1 INTRODUCTION
Photovoltaics can be used in grid-connected mode in two ways: as arrays installed at
the end use site, such as on rooftops, or as utility-scale generating stations. This
chapter deals with the related technical, economic and other issues to be considered,
and examines various government and utility programs worldwide. A technical guide
for the connection of photovoltaic and other renewable energy generators to local
electricity networks in Australia has been produced by the Australian Business
Council for Sustainable Energy (2004).
Grid-connected PV overtook stand-alone systems as the largest global market sector
in 2000 (Solarbuzz, 2004a; IEA-PVPS, 2004a), as indicated in Fig. 10.1 for
International Energy Agency member countries, although off-grid applications
continue to dominate in Australia (Watt, 2004). Globally, there are some extremely
large grid-connected systems, including 4 MW p and 5 MW p installations near Hemau,
Bavaria and near Espenhain, Saxony, respectively. A huge 64 MW p system is under
discussion for Moura, Portugal. Currently, the largest in Australia is at Singleton in
NSW. It is a ground-mounted 400 kW p PV ‘farm’ that produces 550 MWh per year,
and was commissioned in 1998 (SEDA, 2004). The largest Australian rooftop array is
on the roof of the Queen Victoria Markets in Melbourne. This was commissioned in
2
2003, uses 1328 PV laminates, each 1.59 × 0.79 m , and incorporates a public