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1.0 INTRODUCTION in 2010 while the project was under construction. lated to the upstream phases of the project lifecycle
A primary objective for any power plant is to Golder analyzed and validated both general and (siting, development, design, etc.) and may have
ensure the plant continuously and reliably operates, technical factors affecting the productivity of the very significant effects on the downstream phase
thereby generating the maximum economic and power stations. Since 2011 Golder has supervised (performance, production).
energy performance returns. the completion of construction and continues to
provide supervision of the O&M activities. The operation model presented here assumes that
Solar Photovoltaic (PV) power plants are no excep- a primary O&M contractor has direct responsibil-
tion. The operation and maintenance (O&M) of In the U.S., Golder is able to provide ad hoc integra- ity, using its own resources or sub-contractors, to
large PV plants requires an integrated management tion of engineering and environmental services manage all electrical generation and transmission
system that is implemented throughout the entire for the entire solar project lifecycle (such as the systems, security systems, visual mitigation (green
lifecycle. Montalto di Castro PV plant) from site selection, areas on the perimeter) management and pest
planning and environmental permitting through control. Other contractors are responsible for civil
Since PV power plant management practices are commissioning and operation and finally, decom- works and general housekeeping, including clean-
still emerging and evolving, Golders experience in missioning phases for any solar PV project. ing of the panels, and specific parts maintenance.
managing a very large facility in Italy, can provide In particular, on behalf of the owner of the plant
critical insight to the actual risks and opportunities This paper is based, in part, on the experience of Golder directly supervises the entire operational
involved in the operations as well as their impact on Golder in the assessment and supervision of O&M structure and related activities.
return on investment. activities of the Montalto di Castro power station
and other similar large scale PV plants.
The consortium of the international investors for
the Montalto di Castro PV Plant retained Golder to Our practical experience suggests that many issues
conduct a Technical Due Diligence of the project emerging during the O&M phase are strongly re-
THIS ARTICLE WAS PRESENTED AT SOLAR POWER-GEN 2013 AND HAS BEEN REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION FROM Solar POWER-GEN. THE LAYOUT HAS BEEN CHANGED FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS REPRINT.
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THIS ARTICLE WAS PRESENTED AT SOLAR POWER-GEN 2013 AND HAS BEEN REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION FROM Solar POWER-GEN. THE LAYOUT HAS BEEN CHANGED FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS REPRINT.
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THIS ARTICLE WAS PRESENTED AT SOLAR POWER-GEN 2013 AND HAS BEEN REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION FROM Solar POWER-GEN. THE LAYOUT HAS BEEN CHANGED FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS REPRINT.
owner of the plant then requested authorization
from the Municipality to proceed with the split of
the municipality road and register it as a new land
parcel which would include a perpetual easement
right in favor of the plant, all without costs on the
Municipality side.
Leasing or obtaining a right-of-way on Native agricultural lands. In the last few years, concerns Early management of the above issues may result
American tribal land is an option, particularly in the over conversion of agricultural land for utility use in a more efficiently managed project from both a
Southwest. Developers should be aware that leases have begun to gain political steam putting pressure time and cost perspective for the permitting, con-
and rights-of-way on Native American tribal land on local officials approving projects. struction, start-up and operation processes.
require approval by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Developers should consult with the specific tribe re- Any grant of a property right must contain certain 2.3 ENGINEERING FEATURES
garding potential archaeological or other resources legal elements no matter where the property is Many important technical aspects concerning the
on the tribal land because each tribe is in the located in the US. Many states require the grant plant should be addressed in the planning and
best position to evaluate which sites have cultural of a solar easement to describe the dimensions of design phases. Issues such as the selection between
importance and to determine issues associated with the easement, the estimated amount of sunlight fixed mount or tracking systems, and centralized
leasing lands for solar projects. directed to the system, any permitted shading by (maximum production) or distributed (maximum
vegetation and other plantings, the corresponding availability) conversion systems, and the possibility
In the US, the Environmental Protection Agency reduction in access to sunlight, and any proposed to have flexible control over the power production,
has established the RE-Powering Americas Land compensation to the grantor of the easement. The in relation to the electricity market demand, should
Initiative, which promotes the reuse of potentially solar easement must also contain state-specific be carefully evaluated in terms of potential implica-
contaminated lands for renewable energy project requirements. A states focus may be affected by tions well before the plant enters into operation.
development. This initiative aims to revitalize terrain, character of the area or weather. Some
degraded land by promoting renewable energy as states may be height- or design-sensitive (Califor- A common choice at the design stage is the type
a productive end use, when aligned with the com- nia, Colorado) or locale-sensitive (Hawaii), or may of tracking system. Mono-axial tracking systems
munity vision for the site aiming to turn liabilities focus on visibility and placement (North Carolina), have a better yield compared to fixed systems (up
into assets for surrounding communities. Of the 60 orientation (Wisconsin), zoning (Rhode Island), or to 25%), but may cause an increase in maintenance
sites developed thus far, 49 sites are PV solar facili- setback issues (Oregon). costs due to the presence of moving parts and
ties. In less than four years, RE-Powering tracked management of a larger number of spare parts. In
a compound annual growth rate of 40%. While As a practical example of above issues, in our our experience, the incidence of additional O&M
the proportion of renewable energy projects on case history the facility was designed to occupy a costs over a two year timeframe is quite small, but
contaminated lands is relatively small, RE-Powering former cattle-track owned by the Municipality, not could increase with time. (See Figure 5)
is seeing a marked trend, showing that this land recognized until the plant was actually built. The
development strategy is gaining momentum.
THIS ARTICLE WAS PRESENTED AT SOLAR POWER-GEN 2013 AND HAS BEEN REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION FROM Solar POWER-GEN. THE LAYOUT HAS BEEN CHANGED FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS REPRINT.
Figure 6: Damages from heavy rainfall Figure 7: Repair of connection lines
Considering the effect on O&M activities as well ties involved in the location and repair of the failed a number of factors, such as:
as costs, a choice can be made between a system equipment. Different areas of the plant and utility
with a higher number of smaller electrical compo- involve coordination of the utility operators, O&M QQ Familiarity with the site and equipment;
nents, particularly inverters and transformers, or a contractors, substation workers, local authorities QQ Proximity of the contractors premises;
system with larger but fewer components. With the and health and safety agencies, which need to be QQ Number and qualification of staff;
latter configuration the production is maximized, properly trained and prepared to manage the situa- QQ Level of experience and references;
but in the case of failure of a component, replace- tion in a coordinated and knowledgeable manner to QQ Financial status;
ment may be more difficult due to poor availability minimize downtime and maximize plant availability QQ Health and Safety record;
or long waiting time. Because of the potential and production. QQ Proper permits and licenses.
THIS ARTICLE WAS PRESENTED AT SOLAR POWER-GEN 2013 AND HAS BEEN REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION FROM Solar POWER-GEN. THE LAYOUT HAS BEEN CHANGED FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS REPRINT.
Figure 8: Elevated inverter room Figure 9: Drainage system, perimeter fence and security cameras
bility on a slope which washed out the ground that tion (SCADA) systems might not always be reliable possible damages are related to these aspects. The
covered both the main and backup underground due to possible temporary losses of connection. A access of unauthorized people to the plant has to
lines which ran alongside each other, for a length regular check of the data, based on the physical be prevented both for security and safety reasons.
of around 200 meters and subsequently caused the reading of the meters to compare the records is
interruption of production for a few days until the strongly advised to confirm the final data. In order to minimize the occurrence of such events a
ground cover was stabilized and the lines repaired. suitable balance between a remote control system
Another aspect related to data acquisition is the and on site security personnel should be achieved,
Due to the same weather event, the main control implication on the contractual goals set for the depending on the size of the plant, the morphology
room was also partially flooded. O&M contractor in terms of guaranteed Perfor- and extension of the site and the general environ-
mance Ratio, i.e. the overall plant production mental context. (See Figure 10)
In general, these types of events can be prevented efficiency. The minimum guaranteed parameters
by running a comprehensive risk assessment of are usually based on relatively safe assumptions by The anti-intrusion software typically used is able to
the possible impacts on the continuity of the plant the contractor and therefore an accurate techni- detect moving objects, but not to recognize false
resulting from climate change, and particularly cal assessment is needed to avoid an overall low alarms due to movements not necessarily generated
extreme weather events. (See Figures 6 and 7) performance objective. by unauthorized access to the site. In our case,
when the security operator receives an alarm, he
Redundant systems for evacuation and connection The assessment of the objectives of the contractor has to verify the real source of the alarm and then
lines, as well as for monitoring and security sys- is essentially based on the measurements of the assign the proper category/level of attention, based
tems, have to be carefully planned and designed in meteo station. iIt is critical that these are repre- on a predefined classification (i.e. people, animals,
order to constitute a viable alternative to the main sentative of the actual situation and therefore the vegetation, weather), and record the event
systems and guarantee the overall continuity of the instruments need constant calibration and certifica- accordingly. To address this issue, we are planning
plant, under any circumstances. tion. It is also critical that the dust cover conditions to upgrade the software to learn from the past
of the irradiance sensors are consistent with those events and to be able to systematically discern
Critical rooms, particularly those containing control on the panels, in order to be comparable, i.e. clean- between a real and a false alarm, at least for
systems and critical electrical equipment, should be ing should preferably be done at the same time. It repetitive movements.
designed to be raised above the floor of the site and could also be advisable to keep additional sensors
above the possible maximum elevation of water. to be cleaned more frequently in order to act as
(See Figure 8) benchmarks for the optimum values of irradiance.
The cleaning schedule can then be optimized
Run-off and drainage systems should be designed based on the difference between the measured
for extreme events to guarantee the functionality of irradiance in the two sets of sensors. As a final
civil infrastructures, such as roads and fencing, and confirmation of the data, the continuous correlation
grid connection systems. (See Figure 9) between different sources of the same data (e.g.
different meteo stations on site) can also supply an
2.7 Data acquisition early warning of problems in the data acquisition
Data acquisition is a crucial issue to be considered systems.
to track and maintain optimal system and plant
performance. Accurate and reliable monitoring 2.8 Security
data are also necessary to comply with regulatory Security systems are essential for a suitable opera-
reporting requirements. tion of a solar farm in order to avoid damages and
possibly plant downtime from theft and vandalism.
Based on our experience, production data collected In fact, a recent study on German PV plants shows
through the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisi- that up to 16% of the monetary impact of all the Figure 10: False alarms detection software
THIS ARTICLE WAS PRESENTED AT SOLAR POWER-GEN 2013 AND HAS BEEN REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION FROM Solar POWER-GEN. THE LAYOUT HAS BEEN CHANGED FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS REPRINT.
Thus, in our experience a specific combination of
operators, video cameras and dedicated software
has to be implemented to insure a sustainable level
of security of the plant, and specifically manage
alarms, discerning between real and false ones.
2.9 Housekeeping
Typical housekeeping activities on a large PV plant
include a variety of concerns, such as manage-
ment of water run-off and drainage, cleaning of
panels, control of vegetation, maintenance of civil
structures and roads.
In our case, we have successfully adopted a very Figure 11: Sheep grazing in the panels area
sustainable way to control the development of
vegetation, especially in the areas where the In warmer climates, the temperature in the inverter
modules are located, by letting a substantial flock cabins, as well as in spare parts storage rooms, can
of sheep live and graze within the plant boundaries. raise significantly thus reducing the efficiency of the
Besides the positive effect on cultural and social equipment, therefore it is advisable to design suit-
continuity (the shepherds did not have to move able air cooling system, especially for the former.
away from their historical land), we can avoid any
damage of the panels associated with the use of In order to be effective, the cooling system typically
mechanical equipment typically employed to trim needs to be of significant capacity, thus requiring
the vegetation. a high energy input. It is then critical to insure its
efficiency through an appropriate maintenance
Another common issue with PV plants is the pres- program, suitably integrated in the O&M activities.
ence of rodents and their negative effect on cables
integrity. In this case, we found out that most of the A possible optimization of the system design could
rats on site were actually introduced at construction entail a proper management of hot and cool air
stage through the containers used to deliver the flows within the cabin, by considering the actual
different pieces of equipment. heat transfer and flow direction between the equip-
ment and the environment, in order to maximize
Suitable preventive measures include therefore a the air cooling equipment yield. In the photo below,
more careful control of this specific issue at the for instance, the hot air exhaust that comes from an
equipment delivery stage and the use of reinforced inverter is conveyed out of the cabin without mix-
cables to ideally withstand the bites. ing with the fresh air that comes from the cooling
system. (See Figure 12) Figure 12: Air temperature management in the
At the operational stage, additional measures may inverter cabin
consist in intensifying the frequency of pest control As a good practice during the operational stage,
routines to mitigate access by animals and filling the temperature in the cabins should be monitored connected to the general control software, which in
the cable connection pits with sand in order to constantly and recorded through the SCADA system turn leads to a proper plan for routine maintenance.
prevent theft of cables. (See Figure 11) so it can represent an early warning in case of
problems. We actually experienced a few oil spills from trans-
In some instances the preventive measures may formers, but a suitable containment system had
actually clash with specific permit requirements. 2.10 Environment, Health and been designed in the space under the cabins which
Safety allowed us to manage the issue properly through
At the Montalto di Castro Plant, the operating There are potential environmental and health and the planned disposal of the resulting waste.
permit required the plant owner to create holes safety issues associated with the full project life With reference to specific health and safety
in the fence in order to allow land continuity for cycle that need to be addressed at all stages of de- hazards, the inverters noise may be quite high,
the passage of local fauna, typically medium-sized velopment. In particular, we have identified oil spills especially in specific periods of the day and of the
animals. Once again, having a solid relationship from the transformers and noise in the inverter year. The exposure of the O&M operators when per-
with the local authorities proved to be very helpful cabins as two of the most significant impacts to be forming activities inside the inverter room should be
and a solution was finally reached. In fact, we were managed during the operation of the plant. carefully controlled, through a proper assessment of
able to demonstrate, through a well-documented the actual equipment emissions. In our case, after
photographic survey, that there were already All transformers at some stages may be subject to having identified the issue, we requested specific
enough pathways through the fence, naturally cre- leaking, which can be prevented through proper personal protection equipment to be included in the
ated by small soil settlements or drainage ditches, monitoring of their oil temperature, pressure and contractors health and safety plan.
and therefore no additional work was necessary. level, possibly with the aid of an automated system
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2.11 Stakeholder management We were also able to witness that if local contrac- In the operation phase, it would still be possible
Considering the local context, it is always advisable tors and citizens are engaged in the operations, to address most of the critical issues presented in
to proactively engage and involve the local com- the community will be happy to help if needed. For the paper. Periodic audits of the plant can help
munity and key stakeholders in order to keep them example, as mentioned earlier, the previous owners identify weak points in the systems or margins for
informed on the plant development and operation of some plots of land were shepherds. We agreed their improvement, consequently finding effective
at all stages, build positive, trusting relationship with them to let their sheep graze inside the plant. solutions.
with the community and relevant authorities, This gives many advantages to the operation of the
provide adequate avenues for community feedback plant, since by controlling the height of the vegeta- Such audits can be run at a qualitative level by
and ensure social issues are identified at an early tion in such a sustainable way, the risk of fires or conducting reviews of the design and operational
stage, managed and, where feasible, resolved. panel shading is greatly reduced. Moreover the documentation, including historical performance
shepherds and other local people typically provide data and records of anomalies, visual inspections of
Proactive and consolidated stakeholders communi- useful feedback about the local situation and its the plant systems, assessments of the operational
cation lines can definitely improve the management evolution. activities and plans in place, random testing of
of a number of issues during the plant operation. representative electrical components and direct
In terms of dealing with local authorities and regu- 3.0 CONCLUSIONS measurements of key plant performance indicators.
lators, general administrative procedures, as well as Our experience in the assessment and supervi- Critical issues can then be reviewed at a deeper,
contingencies and emergencies, can be managed in sion of the operation of large scale solar farms is more quantitative level with further targeted test-
a much more straightforward way if the quality and presented through the case study of the 51 MW PV ing and development of specific analytical models.
reputation of the plant operator allow establishing plant in Montalto di Castro in Italy.
a relationship based on trust. Based on our international work on PV plants, we
This case shows that an integrated approach to can conclude that many of the concepts and prac-
The same holds true for communities or neighbours planning, execution and monitoring of the activities tices that have been presented in this paper, suit-
around the plant, where favourable and personal can lead to an optimal performance of the plant. ably adapted for general context and site specific
relationships can lead to sharing of information that The integration should be accomplished throughout conditions, are applicable to diverse and different
would not be available otherwise and to peaceful the project lifecycle phases (siting, development, contexts, including similar large scale developments
resolution of minor conflicts. design and operation) and across the different in the US.
tasks within each phase, in order to identify all the
In the case of the former cattle-track described ear- possible synergies, thus minimizing the risks and In fact, based on the history of PV plants in Europe,
lier, the situation became even more complicated leveraging the opportunities. a large overall capacity of PV plants could be
since the authorities had previously authorized developed in a relatively short time period, over 2
another plant to place its connection line under All the O&M activities can be recognized as related to 3 years, but will have to be operated effectively
the cattle-track. The other plants EPC contractor to upstream lifecycle phases and should be properly for a much longer time, in the order of 20 years,
was under a tight schedule to connect the system considered at the relevant stage. during which period the existence and application
in order to maximize revenues. Thanks largely to of sound plans and practices will be able to effect
solid relationships held with the local authorities we For instance, a proper response to extreme weather the real success of the project. Thus, a thorough
were able to avoid the positioning of the line under events implies the consideration of the associated planning, execution and monitoring approach to
our plant by the other plants EPC contractor, who issues at the siting and planning stage, through O&M activities will optimize plant performance
could only obtain authorization to modify its route. the assessments of the risk and the consequent and maximize production yield, with reference to
design mitigation measures, and the presence of the potential capacity given by the engineering and
Another example of the use of a proactive and an adequate response plan in terms of emergencies design features of the project.
positive relationship with the authorities was given and repair procedures.
earlier on, when presenting the issue of having to
insure the land continuity through the plant for the
local fauna.
About Golder
As a global, employee-owned organisation with wide range of independent consulting, design and
over 50 years of experience, Golder Associates is construction services in our specialist areas of
driven by our purpose to engineer earths earth, environment and energy.
development while preserving earths integrity.
We deliver solutions that help our clients achieve
their sustainable development goals by providing a For more information, visit golder.com.
THIS ARTICLE WAS PRESENTED AT SOLAR POWER-GEN 2013 AND HAS BEEN REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION FROM Solar POWER-GEN. THE LAYOUT HAS BEEN CHANGED FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS REPRINT.