5MW Fixed Tilted Solar Farm.

We call Fixed Tilted Solar Racking "Cave-Man Racking", as it is inferior at Generating Energy compaired too Dual Axis-solar Radiation Tracking (DART) Racking.

DART Racking has been proven to Generate up to 60% more Energy per Year than any Fixed Tilted Racking !

Below are the cost & modelling for a 5MW Solar Fixed Tilted Farm, with a footprint of approx. 5 Hectares (12.5 Acres) of land.

Plant & Equipment Wholesale Costs calculated @$0.70 exchange Rate;

Supply: 3mt high perimeter Security Fencing, Solar CREE Led Security Lighting (inc. WiFi Video) *$80'000
Supply: 7'140 x 700W, Perk, CCE approved Solar Modules =*$1'925'000
Supply: Fixed Tilted Racking inc. 5'500 Ground Screw *$550'000 (Worst Generation)

Optional: Single Axis Tilted Solar Racking, inc. 3'920 Ground Screws $800'000 (Good Generation)
Optional: 476x DART-15-700 Dual Axis-solar Radiation Trackers, inc. Foundations $3'086'000 (BEST Generation)

Supply Plant & Equipment: (Supply/Hire)

Supply & Port Clearance: 2x Ground Screw Tractors =$75'000
Supply & Port Clearance: 2x Hydraulic Ground Screw Drivers=$5'000
Supply & Port Clearance: 1x Conduit Trenching Tractors $30'000
Supply & Port Clearance: 1x 3 ton Spider Crane $50'000
Supply & Port Clearance: 1x 2.5 ton Off-Road Forklift $40'000
TOTAL: *$200'000

Supply of Electrical Equipment:

2x 2'500kW SMA Inverters inc. weatherproof elevated sub-station housing *150'000.
5km Orange Electrical Ground Conduit, Safety Tape, and Chemical Sealer.
All Electrical Cabling;
- Solar Wiring from Solar Racking to End-of-String Combiner Box.
- Combiner-box to Switch Gear node at main SMA Sub-station inverters.
- 6km of 6mm DC string/array Tinned Copper cable.
- 5km of 10mm DC Tinned Copper Cable, from Combiner Boxes Bus-Bars to inverter Junctions.
- 3km of 90mm HV Cable, 11kVa, 100% Copper Wiring too Sub-station & into State Distribution lines.
Pressure Test Under Ground Conduit, & Commission Energy Infrastructure Tests.
TOTAL: *$750'000

Supply, Clearance Cost and Taxes for above Equipment: *$3'600'000
Shipping Containers & Equipment Freighted to site: *20x40'@$1'800 & *20x20'@$1'300 etc. =*$60'000
Estimated Equipment Hire, Fuel, Compliance Fees & Labour Costs:

12 month Project design, environmental study & Council administration costs $100'000.
Temporary Site Sheds: Office, Security, Lunch room & Toilets facilities *$25'000.
Clear, Rake & Level ground of Rocks & Debris with Bobcat: =2 people, 7 days *$10'000.
Set-out & Drive-in 5'500 FT Foundation Ground Screws: 4 people 14 days *$25'000.
Install & Assemble Tilted Single Axis Solar Racking & Modules: =10 people 60 days $90'000.
Install SMA inverters Room in elevated Flood proof sub-station: =2 people 5 days $5'000.
Install Perimeter Security Fencing & Solar WiFi Lighting & Cameras: 4 people 7 days $10'000.
Dig Trench, Lay & Seal Electrical Conduit from Solar Racking to SMA Sub-station inc. Pressure Test: 4 people 14 days $20'000.
Trench, Lay & Seal 11 kVA Electrical Conduit from Sub-station to Ausgrid infrastructure $15'000.
Estimated Installation Costs: +20% safety margin *$350'000

Project Worker Share Incentive: *$500'000 (*For employees, calculated on hours worked)
Projected Profit: *$250'000
Fully installed & commissioned project *$4'755'000
Project completion 6~12 month, allowing for bureaucratic delays.

Unfortunately the procurement manager purchase the cheapest and most inefficient Module Racking, being "Fixed Tilted Racking", in general terms the 13'200, 380W Modules installed, will only be able to Generate between 20~25MWh day peak, this will vary greatly between Summer & Winter, due to the sun's arch through the sky, where the acute angle of the sun striking the Modules from before 10:30PM and after 2:30PM Generates considerably less thereafter, meaning there will Only be Peak Energy Generation for approx. 1.5~2.5 hours per day.

Where 5MW SAT Racking would Generate *35~40MW per day, and DART Racking could Generate *45~55MW day peak, based on DART modules being mounted some 3mt above ground level, thus further reducing Morning & Evening shadowing from surrounding trees and natural terrain.

In general terms with all Plant & Equipment on site, a well organised & efficient team of 6~10 workers, should only take 8~14 days per MW to fully install a SAT Solar Farm, as modern SAT racking use Single vertical Posts or Ground Screws, Masts, and Horizontal beams, where Fixed Tilted Racking (FTR) has far more Parts and horizontal beams & Nut, Bolt and other components to assemble!

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Renewable Energy Credits:

This client intended to claim (LGC) to reduce there investment break-even time, and reduce there environmental carbon footprint, for there Hotel chain and there other businesses.

User this Solar Farm Investment Calculator to see how long it will take to break even on your investment cost!

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We anticipate the owner would have the vision to invest in two 1414° Thermal Energy Storage System (TESS), this great Australian technology has been proven to work very well, and the company has stated the technology will provide energy storage at 1/10 the cost of the commercial TESLA battery installation, and other Battery type Energy Storage systems.

In 2019, the smallest TESS unit available is a 10MW module for Commercial applications, and can store energy for several days, allowing the Generator/producer the option to first self consume and then sell any excess stored energy on National Electricity Market (NEM) during Peak demand (Peak Power), Currently P2P energy Trading via Power Ledger is providing a better financial return, instead of exporting into the Ausgrid infrastructure & then onto a energy Retailer at greatly reduced/lower daytime energy rate!

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Peer-to-Peer Energy Trading (P2P) is the latest exciting development in Australia Energy Market in the last 100 years!

P2P energy trading is being led by Power Ledger , an Australian company, P2P Energy Trading is set to become a Big Disruptive force, that bye-passes the need of the deceptively named "Energy Retailers" that don't actually pay for the energy customers consumers.

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Solar energy can vary greatly depending on the Solar Racking type, you can Calculate the energy generated of different Racking methods here, where 13'200 x 380W solar modules, rate this solar farm at 5MWh peak.

As a guideline, a 5MW Solar Farm energy Generation varies between different types of solar Module and Racking;

Fixed, north facing, 20~30° latitude tilted solar array, will Generate Peak energy for approx. 4.5 hours =^*20MW day.
Provides approx. 4 hours peak power Generation per day with shoulder/obscure light for approx. 2 hours
Single-Axis east to west Vertical tracking, will Generate ^*30MWp day.
Provides 6~7 hours peak power per Generation day with little obscure light.
Tilted Single-Axis east to west, Horizontal tracking, will Generate ^*35MWp day.
Provides 7~8+ hours peak power Generation per day with little obscure light.
Dual-Axis Tracking, is Perpendicular to the sun, will Generate ^*50MWp day.
Provides 10~11+ hours peak power per Generation day with no obscure light.

(*) approx. as figures relate to the Suns latitude difference throughout the year.

NB: 380W, 72 cell solar module/panel technology will Generate 40% more energy than the common residential 270W, 60cell panel, it should also be noted 270W panels also requires 10% larger racking footprint, the small additional expense of 380W panels is commonly recovered in a very short time by improver energy Generation !

So, in short it is imperative to use 380W or better panels, less power generated equates to a longer Pay-back period. This is the same for residential or commercial, no matter what method of installation is used, be it Fixed Flat, Fixed Tilted, Single or Dual-axis Tracking Arrays !

The final cost of a fully commissioned Solar Farm can vary considerably, as Labour plays a large part based on whether the site installs Fixed Tilted Racking, being the cheapest short term, with Single-Axis or Dual-Axis Tracking is more expensive in the short term, or a combination of both can be used as shown in the modelling below.

Be aware that besides standard 380W panels gaining 40% more generated energy, Single-Axis & Dual-Axis Tracking will Generate additional 20~35+% more energy, than a Fixed flat panel racking ...and that will be for the next 25+ years !

Single & Dual Axis Tracking control box software, should stow the panels flat in high wind conditions or in snow prone areas will tilt to dislodge the burden of Snow, the control box software automatically backtrack the panels where neighbouring panels create shading, this commonly happens very early or late in the evening, to obtain maximum Generation.

As an example:

Use this Solar Farm energy calculator to see the different Generation ability of the above mentioned Solar Array configurations, where Dual Axis Solar Tracking Generates energy for over *11hr a day, e.g. 1'000 x 350w DART solar array Generates 3.5MW day.
Where Single Axis Tracking using 1'000 x 350w Panels will generate 2.3MW day, with peak Generation *6.5 hours day.

The main consideration between single & dual axis tracking is the final Material, Installation & operational cost, installation cost is usually calculated in MW per man hours. No matter what system is used, the racking fittings & fixtures including motors & software play a significant part of the initial supply cost. The DC~AC conversion stations, Cabling and Installation cost, inc. Sub-Station cost, are as equally expensive, and need to be planed well in advance, as speed of installation is critical to enabling a quick return on investment.

SMA 1500V MVPS 2500kVA A solar farm is divided into areas/sections, so that as power is generated, it is sent to SMA 1500V MVPS 2500kVA (image right) or similar power conversion stations that are strategically located within the solar farm. Stations incorporate a central PV inverter, transformer and associated switchgear and monitoring systems.

These stations convert DC solar array power to AC power, then the AC power is fed either into on-site energy storage for later usage as peak power, or into the state grid distribution transformer via high voltage 11kVA underground transition lines, where energy/power is then distributed to the local community.

NEWS: The 1414° Thermal Energy Storage System (TESS), is a new Australian commercial energy storage technology, 10MW is the smallest unit, reported to be a game changer to buck the trend in energy stored, click the link above to read more.

There is also another new and very interesting commercial technology Gallium Arsenide solar array, these solar Panels were designed by the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), and has held the worlds best Generation record since 1984, now over 35 years.

Below modelling shows Generation potential of various Racking Technologies.

25° Fixed Tilted, North Facing Racking.

22MW = 4.5 hours peak Generation.

25° Tilted, East/West, Single-Axis Tracking.

35MW = 6+ hours day peak Generation.

Dual-Axis Tracking Arrays.

44.7MW = 11 hours peak Generation.

* Approx. figures do not include bad weather conditions, contracted labour, additional equipment & unforeseen costs characteristic, due to variations in racking, site conditions and council changes to project conditions.