TRNC People’s Power Through Photoelectric Panels

People’s Power Through Photoelectric Panels

Readers mail….. From H Jarrs….

Not long ago we had a very long power cut in Northern Cyprus which lasted well into the evening. My neighbour would have been revelling in the comfort of his large installation of photoelectric panels, but they would not have helped him once it got dark unless, of course, he had a battery backup system as well.

What energy making options are there?

I was prompted to consider, yet again, installing my own panels. The discussion I had with myself, as usual, went round in circles. On the one hand, the “current” cost of producing PV electricity is very low, mainly just insurance, cleaning, repairing and replacing broken components, and ultimately the disassembly of the system. There is, however, a considerable initial capital cost which takes quite a long time to recover from the savings of the price of normally supplied electricity. On the other hand, depositing an equivalent sum of money with the bank, especially at today’s ludicrous rates of interest, generates quite enough interest to pay Kibtec Electricity’s monthly bills, and you get all your money back whenever you want.

Another consideration is that even a PV setup does not work during nighttime power cuts. So, for complete security, some form of battery backup is also required, which obviously increases the overall costs of a self-contained system quite considerably. For someone without a domestic PV system, power cuts are largely an inconvenience except when they go on for a long time or well into the night. So, for the domestic user, a battery backup system big enough to cover the “normal” power cuts of 3 to 4 hours and to rely on Kibtec for the rest of one’s power requirements may well be economically viable.

What about a Cooperative solar farm?

My mind wandered on a bit, and I looked at the relative costs of PV systems and batteries. Given that this is a broad generalisation, it appears that a backup battery system with a suitable capacity costs about 50% of the cost of installing a PV system big enough to generate one’s annual power requirements. I also discovered that the cost of installing a PV panel on a commercial-sized solar farm is about 50% of the cost of installing units on domestic premises. In addition, commercial panels are generally bigger, more efficient, sometimes tiltable, well-maintained, and can easily produce about 25% more electricity on a like-for-like basis than a domestic panel.

All this led me to think that an ideal solution would be for the domestic user to install a suitable battery system but to invest in an appropriate number of panels on a PV Cooperative solar farm. The power generated from these panels would be credited against your normal Kibtec bill. Such a scheme would provide the same near total security of electrical supply at two thirds of the cost of a domestic PV installation plus battery. The scheme would also be available in a wide variety of situations where a PV system cannot be installed; for example, flats or other small or shaded properties. In addition, if one cannot afford, at the outset, for a 100% setup it would be very easy to add one or more panels to your portfolio as and when the cash is available. Furthermore, all those hideously ugly rooftop installations would be avoided.

It seems to me that a People’s Power Cooperative is an idea which screams out to be adopted.