China Activates World’s Largest Offshore Floating Solar Installation – CleanTechnica

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Everybody knows that solar panels make the cheapest electricity available, but deciding where to put them is a problem. People consider them an eyesore, as if the destruction caused by more powerful storms and heavier rains brought on by a warming planet is somehow a beautiful sight. That has led solar developers to imagining new and interesting ways to install solar panels. A recent study suggests putting them over highways, for instance. Doing so would not only generate enough electricity to meet 60% of the world’s needs, it would also reduce traffic deaths and injuries by making the roads safer.

Other places that qualify as ideal locations for solar panels are lakes and canals, which can either be covered with them or have them just float on the surface. China recently installed a huge floating solar panel system on top of a flooded former coal mine. Floating solar has some secondary advantages. The water helps to keep the panels cool, which can make them more efficient and the panels help to reduce evaporation, which can be a boon to farmers who need the water for irrigation or communities that rely on the water for their drinking purposes.

There is another place where solar panels can go that will not offend the eyes of residents — far out to sea. You might think that is a crazy idea. Ocean storms can create enormous waves that would destroy floating solar farms, wouldn’t they? The answer is, not necessarily. If correctly engineered and located in areas of the ocean that are typically protected from such storms. offshore solar can be done quite effectively.

On November 13, 2024, China’s state-owned CHN Energy began generating electricity at a 1 gigawatt offshore floating solar park, according to a statement on the company’s website. Developed by its subsidiary, Guohua Energy Investment Co, the park is 8 km (5 miles) off the coast of the city of Dongying in Shandong province and can generate 1.78 billion kilowatt-hours of power each year — enough to meet that energy needs of 2.6 million city dwellers, the statement said.

The offshore floating solar installation consists of 2,934 PV platforms installed using large-scale steel truss platforms affixed to foundations made of pilings. Each platform measures 60 meters (196 feet) in length and 35 meters (115 feet) in width. The project marks the first time in China that a 66 kilovolt offshore cable paired with an onshore cable has been used for high capacity, long distance transmission in the PV sector.

How Do Offshore Solar Farms Work?

Offshore solar farms work by using photovoltaic panels mounted on floating platforms to harness the sun’s energy and convert it into electricity. A major benefit of the process is the fact it frees up vital space on land, a huge bonus in densely populated countries like China. Offshore farms can also reduce the impact on land-based ecosystems as they avoid deforestation and land clearing. However, they also face challenges, including the need for robust structures to withstand extreme marine conditions, higher maintenance costs due to saltwater corrosion, and the potential environmental impact on marine life.

Some countries are experimenting with offshore solar farms as part of their renewable energy strategies. For example, the Netherlands and Singapore are pioneering offshore floating solar technologies, while other countries are exploring similar projects to meet renewable energy goals. In May, state-owned China National Nuclear Corp started construction on a 2 GW offshore solar plant near the coast of eastern Jiangsu province, the Global Times reported. It is located in the area earmarked for the warm water discharge from the Tianwan nuclear plant.

Offshore Solar In The North Sea

SolarDuck, a Dutch/Norwegian company, is working on floating solar technology that would float on the surface of the North Sea to supplement the output from offshore wind turbines. They already need to have undersea cables to carry their electricity ashore, so why not leverage that infrastructure to carry electricity from solar panels as well? RWE, one of Germany’s largest utility companies, has entered into an agreement to explore and develop offshore floating solar parks globally. The idea is starting small with a a 0.5 MW installation called Merganser, in the North Sea near Ostend, Belgium. The project will include battery storage and serve as a trial of the new technology before expanding on it and applying it in other locations.

This collaboration agreement accelerates the transition of SolarDuck’s offshore floating solar technology towards bankable, commercial technology, and will speed up the roll-out of this new technology globally. SolarDuck CEO Koen Burgers says, “The need for secure, sustainable and affordable energy demands new and immediate answers from the industry in Europe and also globally. SolarDuck is part of this answer, allowing for solar deployments at sea opening up an exciting new market. Showcasing SolarDuck’s robust technology in rough North Sea conditions will enable us to deploy the technology practically anywhere in the world. We are very pleased that we found in RWE a strong partner who shares our vision of electrifying the world with offshore floating PV. I look forward to our organizations working together to achieve just that.”

Putting solar panels on the open ocean presents a whole new set of challenges, including saltwater corrosion, the constant stress of moving waves and persistent winds, and the occasional catastrophic storm. Shipbuilders know how to deal with the challenges of oceangoing survival. SolarDuck was launched in 2019 as a spinoff of Damen Shipyards, a leading Netherlands shipbuilder. Damen says the idea for offshore floating solar idea was spawned by a discussion between two employees who saw untapped potential for offshore solar. “Collaborating or investing in start-ups improves our strategic position and hence, our competitive advantage, and ultimately it makes it easier to achieve our sustainable and CSR goals,” explains it head of corporate development, Joerek Kohutnicki.

SolarDuck’s contribution to the offshore floating solar field is a modular, triangular platform that can be linked with others to form giant hexagonal solar arrays that undulate like carpets on the waves. That’s not as simple as it sounds, considering the impact of wind on floating objects as well as waves and currents, let alone saltwater and clingy aquatic life. SolarDuck resolves the saltwater issue with offshore grade aluminum guaranteed for 30 years or more. They also cut down the size of the platform floaters, reducing the area available for barnacles, mollusks, algae, and other sea life to park. That’s an important consideration for floating offshore facilities because excess marine fouling can throw the whole system out of balance.

To mitigate wave impacts, the SolarDuck approach involves placing the solar panels on floating platforms instead of directly on the surface of the water. Aside from reducing the risk of micro-cracks, the raised platform also helps reduce salt deposition on the panels. A 10-degree tilt also enables them to take advantage of rainwater cleaning. In addition, the modular platforms are engineered to allow for flexibility in wavy conditions, and the solar panel layout is designed to reduce wind loads. SolarDuck also paid particular attention to the mooring system, noting that an “efficient mooring layout optimizes space, scaling, [and] costs.” The company drew from offshore oil rig know-how as well as new floating wind technologies to design a cost-efficient mooring system.

The Takeaway

China, as usual, is way out in front when it comes to offshore floating solar. According to Time Magazine, China has invested more than $400 billion in clean energy technologies, which in turn have created more than 32 million jobs. An example of why China has such a wide lead in technology cropped up in a story about CATL that CleanTechnica published a few days ago. In it, CATL founder Robin Zeng said his company has more than 20,000 employees engaged in battery research and development, far more than any other battery manufacturer.

Part of the reason Chinese companies rule in clean tech is because of government subsidies like low interest loans and rent-free factories, but part of it is also China’s diligence at creating innovations that drive its industries forward. Companies in other nations simply can’t catch up because China is forging relentlessly forward at such an incredible rate. It’s one thing to put up tariff barriers to protect local industries, but if those industries are not using the time those tariffs buy to become competitive, those tariffs are just corporate welfare and a waste of time and money.

The US has offshore locations that could be suitable for offshore floating solar, but has anyone heard of it being done? No, neither have we. China gets slammed, and deservedly so, for relying heavily on coal-fired generating stations, but its embrace of renewable energy is accelerating. Michael Barnard suggests China could have lower greenhouse gas emissions than the United States by 2035. With the new administration poised to take a wrecking ball to any and all climate initiatives, his prediction is likely to come true much sooner than that.