Floating Solar Panels Are Being Casted Over The North Sea
Ships may no longer be the only things cruising through the North Sea as a new sustainability project is looking to cast floating solar panels over the ocean too.
A German energy company, RWE, has plans to cap waters with solar panels. The 0.5-megawatt peak (MWp) called ‘Merganser’ is the first pilot solar panel that is being geared up to take its voyage out onto the waters off Ostend, Belgium. RWE is working hand in hand with offshore solar energy firm SolarDuck to bring renewable energy out to sea.
The project was forged out of a need for a solution to the rapidly decreasing land space available to harvest renewable energy.
The North Sea often faces high winds, hurricanes, and strong tides, and a triangular-shaped solar array was first introduced to cope with the elements by floating several feet above the ocean and rolling along with the waves.
This allows important electrical elements of the solar collectors to remain dry and safe, and it also requires less maintenance as it is deemed a semi-submersible structure. However, in the press release, the first renders of the product seem to take on a more hexagonal shape instead of triangular.
The harvesting of solar energy doesn’t stop there. RWE and SolarDuck are combining the floating cell farm with an offshore wind farm. The solar panels are being petitioned to be placed in between the wind turbines out at sea at a farm called Hollandse Kust West.
Together, the powers will synergize a mix of solar and wind energy known as hybridization. The concept essentially means an amalgamation of different energy sources being yielded together. It makes for an efficient way of maximizing space in energy farming.
The ocean being the next frontier in energy production is the next best thing, especially for countries with little land to dedicate to renewable sources. Countries such as Portugal and Singapore have already taken to the ocean for sustainable energy.
[via CNBC and Interesting Engineering, cover image via RWE]
