Model project for commercial internal consumption of solar power

CentroPlan, a joint venture of CENTROSOLAR Group AG and Pohlen Bedachungen GmbH, is currently planning one hundred PV roof systems with an aggregate output of 8 MWp on the outlets of a South German discount grocery chain, to be installed by Pohlen Solar, a fully-owned subsidiary of Pohlen Bedachungen. Unlike previous reference projects for industrial and commercial buildings, this latest large-scale project is less about feed-in than about generating power for internal consumption. The retail outlets will meet up to 45 percent of their electricity requirements with their own roof-mounted solar systems, which will generally have an output of around 80 kWp. Even at the wholesale prices that trade and industry can expect, it is worth their while to generate their own power thanks to the sharply reduced cost of PV technology, especially when the expected annual increases in electricity prices are built into the equation.

In future, the discount grocery chain’s branches will feed only 10 percent of the solar power they generate into the local grid, and use up to 90 percent of output directly in situ. This exceptionally high internal consumption rate is achieved because the patterns of solar power generation and power consumption by retail premises throughout the day largely tally. Future appliances, too, will run on power generated during the daytime wherever possible.

This large-scale project, which is due for completion by mid-2012, consolidates the pioneering position of CentroPlan and Pohlen Bedachungen in PV roof systems for commercial and industrial buildings. And in partnership with the innovative reference customer, they show that it is still worth investing in cutting-edge PV technology in Germany even after the reduction in the feed-in tariff. So far, 70 systems have been installed and commissioned.