High alpine solar system works highly efficiently
The high-alpine photovoltaic system on the Albigna dam in Bergell produced 223 megawatt hours of electricity in its first six months of operation. This means that the system operated by the city of Zurich's electricity company is significantly more efficient than a flat-roof system.
The first large high-alpine solar system was set up last summer on the Albigna dam in Graubünden's Bergell. At an altitude of 2100 meters above sea level, 1200 photovoltaic panels were installed over a length of 670 meters at an angle of 78 degrees. The steep angle serves the better processing of the winter sun and prevents snow deposits on the modules, explains the electricity company of the city of Zurich ( ewz ) as operator of the system in a message .
In the first six months after commissioning in September 2020, the high-alpine system has already produced 223 megawatt hours of electricity, ewz further informs in the press release. This fulfilled the “high expectation”, according to which high alpine locations have significantly better production conditions for solar power than the Central Plateau. The winter months have also shown that the system on the Albigna dam works just as efficiently in winter as it does in summer. Between October and March, the efficiency of a high-alpine system is more than a quarter higher than that of a flat-roof system in the Swiss Plateau, writes ewz.
According to calculations, the system on the Albigna dam will generate around 500 megawatt hours of electricity annually with a total output of 410 kilowatts. Ewz customers can join the project via the ewz.solarzüri public participation model. Here, the 2170 square meters of the high-alpine facility are for sale at a price of 560 francs per square meter. The buyers are credited with 180 kilowatt hours of solar power annually for 20 years.
