Emerging research reveals that offshore solar installations in Indonesia alone could produce around 35,000 terawatt-hours (TWh) of solar energy annually, a figure akin to the current global electricity output of 30,000TWh per year.
Unlike most oceanic areas susceptible to storms, equatorial zones experience relative tranquility, allowing for cost-effective engineering solutions to safeguard offshore floating solar panels.
Solar Dominance on the Horizon
A mere 70 square kilometers of solar panels can fulfill the energy needs of one million people in a zero-carbon economy. These panels can be situated on rooftops, arid terrains, integrated with agriculture, or even placed atop water bodies.
However, nations with high population densities, like Nigeria and Indonesia, face spatial constraints for solar energy capture.
These countries, nestled in tropical latitudes known as the “doldrums,” also contend with minimal wind resources. Fortunately, they and their neighboring counterparts can harness boundless energy from solar panels floating on tranquil equatorial seas.
The Potential of Floating Solar
Floating solar panels also find application in inland lakes and reservoirs, with substantial growth underway in this field.
A study from The Australian National University’s School of Engineering highlights oceanic regions untouched by sizable waves or strong winds over four decades. Such areas require no robust and expensive engineering barriers for floating solar installations.
Areas with waves below 6 meters and wind speeds under 15 meters per second could generate up to a million TWh per year, five times the energy required for a decarbonized global economy accommodating ten billion people.
Optimal sites are concentrated near the Equator, primarily encompassing Indonesia and equatorial West Africa. These areas are marked by burgeoning populations and significant environmental significance, where marine floating solar panels could mitigate land use conflicts.
These areas are experiencing rapid population growth while also possessing valuable environmental attributes. The implementation of marine floating solar panels has the potential to mitigate conflicts arising from land use.
Indonesia’s Solar Prospects
With densely populated regions such as Java, Bali, and Sumatra, Indonesia’s population may surpass 315 million by mid-century. Thankfully, Indonesia boasts considerable solar energy potential and substantial pumped hydro energy storage capacity for overnight energy retention.
A coverage of 25,000 square kilometres in solar panels could sustain a carbon-neutral Indonesia with an affluent economy reliant on solar power.
Indonesia’s vast inland seas offer the possibility of hosting extensive solar panel installations. Covering approximately 140,000 square kilometres, these waters have experienced minimal waves and winds in the last 40 years.
In fact, Indonesia’s maritime expanse of 6.4 million square kilometres is 200 times greater than needed to fulfill the nation’s energy demands through offshore floating solar panels.
Future Outlook for Offshore Solar
Most global seascapes confront waves surpassing 10 meters and winds exceeding 20 meters per second. Companies are diligently crafting engineering solutions to bolster offshore panels against storms. Conversely, equatorial maritime environments necessitate less robust and costly defences due to their benign nature.
Our analysis indicates that the most suitable regions cluster within 5 to 12 degrees of latitude from the Equator, predominantly within Indonesia and the Gulf of Guinea near Nigeria. These locales exhibit modest wind potential, high population density, rapid growth, and intact ecosystems, rendering them unsuitable for solar farm clearance. Equatorial regions are not often affected by tropical storms.
While the offshore floating solar industry is nascent, it faces challenges such as salt corrosion and marine fouling. Shallow seas are ideal for anchoring panels to the seabed, necessitating careful environmental preservation and fishing considerations. Changing wind and wave patterns due to global warming are also factors to monitor. Nevertheless, we anticipate that offshore floating panels will substantially contribute to the energy mix of nations with access to serene equatorial seas. By mid-century, nearly one billion individuals in these countries will rely predominantly on solar energy, marking one of the swiftest energy transitions in history.
Source: The Conversation