French floating PV specialist Ciel&Terre and Thailand’s Siam Cement Group (SCG) have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop floating PV systems on hydroelectric dams in Thailand.
SCG will provide the water-resistant floating silicon solar panels that are planned to be installed across eight dams in the country.
Floating solar is attractive in Thailand, and the country’s several hydropower plants offer ideal staging waters. Hydropower and floating solar has several advantages. Hydropower can balance out solar’s variable output and floating systems on reservoirs could reduce evaporation from the reservoirs, which means more fuel for hydropower system. Solar farms are also easier to set afloat on water than to install on land, which can require clearing, excavation, and grading.
Thailand plans to install nearly 2.7 GW of solar capacity on nine dams by 2037.
