Floating Solar Meets Fish Farming For Healthier Fish

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Fish farmers are beginning to deploy floating solar panels at their facilities, as a cost-cutting renewable energy resource that provides significant additional benefits to the health of the fish farm. The floating solar-plus-fish movement is yet another demonstration that the modern renewable energy solutions of the 21st century go beyond reducing carbon emissions, to provide more versatility and economic benefits than than their century-old, fossil fueled counterparts. Take that, haters.

Floating Solar & Fish Farms

The idea of floating solar panels out onto a human-made body of water sounds simple enough. On the plus side, existing fish ponds, reservoirs and other facilities can provide solar developers with space to plant their solar panels, without running into conflicts over land use.

There being no such thing as a free lunch, engineering water-hardiness into a floating solar array posed some initial technical challenges, especially in larger bodies of water where storms can kick up high waves. Specialized mooring systems are also needed, a particularly tricky task for reservoirs that experience sharp changes in water levels. Ice formation is yet another hurdle to confront (see more floating solar background here).

The purpose-built, regulated nature of inland fish farms makes them a more receptive environment for floating solar arrays, though engineering challenges can still arise.

The leading global business-to-business event organizer Leadvent Group is among those sensing an opportunity. In a recent recap of the benefits of floating solar for aquaculture operations, the firm noted that shade from the panels fosters a healthier aquatic environment, by reducing the risk of algae blooms and providing for a more optimal water temperature. That’s a particularly important benefit as aquaculturists deal with the impact of rising global temperatures on their operations.

“The integration of floating solar optimizes the use of space, allowing aquaculturists to harness solar energy without compromising on the surface area needed for fish farming,” Leadvant also noted.

“By generating on-site renewable energy, aquaculture facilities can reduce their dependence on traditional power sources, leading to significant operational cost savings,” the firm emphasized.

Floating Solar Plus Fish Farm Floodgates Open

Not too many floating solar-plus-fish stories have turned up on the CleanTechnica radar in past years, but activity has been percolating up beneath the surface. In the most recent development, earlier this morning the Chinese manufacturer DMEGC Solar announced that it has supplied the solar modules for a massive, 940-megawatt floating solar array at a fish farm in Jingsu, China.

If all goes according to plan, the floating solar array will be completed and hooked up to the grid in October.

“Upon completion, the project is expected to generate 1.609 billion kWh of electricity annually, contributing to a reduction of 496,400 tons in coal consumption and decreasing carbon dioxide emissions by 1.2374 million tons,” DMEGC explains.

Over and above the climate-related benefits and the direct benefits to the health of the aquaculture operation, DMEGC indicates that the floating solar array will serve as a living laboratory for future projects. “It also has the added benefit of enhancing local fishery automation and scientific advancement, fostering collaborative growth across multiple industries and increasing the overall income of local residents,” DMEGC says of its handiwork.

Floating Solar Panels Meet Recycled Fish Cages

Another approach to watch is taking shape in northern Europe, where the Norwegian firm Inseanergy has come up with a business model that deploys recycled fish cages as platforms for floating solar panels. Rather than specifically targeting human-built aquaculture operations on land, Inseanergy seeking new opportunities in open waters adjacent to island communities and other remote locations.

Last February, Inseanergy gained a USD $3 million seal of approval from two investors, Norway’s Norselab impact investment platform and the sustainability-focused family-owned industrial investor Umoe.

“The market for such solutions in salmon and trout farming alone is estimated at a billion dollars. The broader global market for floating solar energy, which the company is now targeting together with investors Norselab and Umoe, is so massive that it’s difficult to estimate its size,” Inseanergy observes.

Inseanergy is currently offering three versions of its floating solar systems. One is aimed at reducing the use of diesel-fueled equipment. Another system eliminates diesel entirely, replacing diesel generators with hydrogen fuel cells.

The third iteration, “Clean Vision,” integrates green hydrogen production into the system, freeing up the fuel cells — and the fish farmers — from the conventional hydrogen supply chain. As with the floating solar panels, the hydrogen equipment would be stationed on recycled aquaculture structures.

“By reusing excess large floating steel structures from the aquaculture industry, it becomes possible to produce and store energy in the form of green hydrogen independently,” Inseanergy observes. “With this concept, larger amounts of energy can be stored to meet the energy needs of the aquaculture facility year-round” (see more green hydrogen background here).

As envisioned by Inseanergy, the green hydrogen angle enables aquaculturists to leverage their floating solar panels for additional income. Selling excess hydrogen to other local operations using fuel cell is one option, and there are others.

“Excess hydrogen (potentially further processed as ammonia) can be traded as fuel for wellboats, service, and processing vessels focusing on sustainable transport of live, slaughtered, or processed fish, as well as other vessels in the nearby maritime sector,” Inseanergy notes.

Floating Solar & Aquaculture: The Best Is Yet to Come

For the floating solar-plus-fish movement to accelerate, fish farmers and solar developers will need more data. Here in the US, some of the answers will be forthcoming from a three-year research project under way at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

“We need renewable energy to mitigate climate change, and we need room to grow food and support ecosystem services,” observed principal investigator Steven Grodsky in an update on the project issued by Cornell last August. “If we partially cover lakes and reservoirs with solar panels, how can we do it in a smart, sustainable way? That’s what we’re going to find out.”

“Specifically, the project will examine how floating solar panels on the research ponds affect the abiotic and biotic parts of water; and how microbes, macroinvertebrates (snails and crayfish), macrophytes (aquatic plants) and fish fare,” Cornell explained. Tracking greenhouse gas emissions, algae growth, and other elements are also included in the project.

Keep an eye on the French firm Ciel et Terre for more activity in the floating solar field. The company is a partner in the Cornell research project. It has about 280 other solar projects to its credit around the world, including a fish farm in Taiwan.

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Image (cropped): A large fish farm in East China is getting a 940-megawatt floating solar array, aimed at replacing fossil fuels while fostering a healthier environment for the fish (courtesy of DMEGC Solar via prnewswire.com).