Floating solar power plant management

To guarantee the safety of people and installations, any activity on site must be mentioned and discussed during the power plant project preparation to find the best compatible use practices. 

Recreational activities requiring access to the water are not allowed in the vicinity of the power plant but can be carried out in a designated area defined in advance between the parties.

Agreed between the parties before signing the long lease, several measures can be put in place to guarantee the security of the site, and allow free access to the owner around the site:

1. The transformation and delivery stations are fenced in to prevent intrusion, theft or damage.
2. The power cable can be buried as soon as it arrives on the bank and up to the transformer station. However, this operation represents an additional cost and is a development measure to be discussed with the owner when drawing up the long lease.
3. Traffic on the water body is controlled to avoid any accident or damage to the power plant and its mooring lines. The water around the power plant constitutes a natural barrier to secure the installation, thus allowing not to fence the site. When designing the project and depending on the owner’s needs, a ” protected ” zone can be defined on the pond to offer free and secure access.

Several companies are now involved in the recycling of photovoltaic panels. We are in contact with different organizations managing the recycling of components in each country where we operate.

Floats are made of HDPE (high density polyethylene) and this material is a real asset because it is resistant to different climatic variations and 100% recyclable.

As with other leases, the long lease requires us to return the property to the owner in the same condition in which it was entrusted to us. Therefore, we include the dismantlement of the floating solar power plant as a specific clause in the contract. To ensure this operation, dismantling is taken into account in the business plan, with provisions for the last 20 years of operation.

Only qualified technicians are authorized to carry out construction and maintenance operations on a floating photovoltaic power plant. We only use service providers trained in our technologies by our parent company, Ciel & Terre International. 

The maintenance of the banks, the roads access and the secondary facilities are also part of the management of the plant. Mowing and pruning help avoid the risk of damage to the equipment or injury to the operating personnel. These services are generally entrusted to local companies or to the site owner, if he has the appropriate equipment.

Each floating solar power plant includes maintenance aisles between the rows of photovoltaic panels. These allow operators to easily walk along the floating solar plant to perform maintenance and operation tasks such as cleaning the solar panels or replacing parts.