Deploying mobilized photovoltaic system between northern and southern hemisphere: Techno-economic assessment

Due to seasonal changes, photovoltaic systems in some areas may remain idle for a long period of time. In order to improve the utilization efficiency and working hours of photovoltaic systems, this paper proposes a concept of a mobilized photovoltaic system which can be transferred between different locations. Based on this idea, a foldable and removable photovoltaic module is designed. To validate the feasibility of the proposed mobilized photovoltaic system, two cases with transferring routes between Stockholm and Rio Grande (representing high latitude regions, Case 1) and between Rabat and Cape Town (representing mid and low latitude regions, Case 2) are selected. For Case 1, the annual power generation of mobilized photovoltaic systems is 169 MWh and 195 MWh higher than that of the fixed photovoltaic systems (PVs) deployed at Stockholm and Rio Grande. For Case 2, the annual power generation of mobilized PVs are lower than that of the fixed PVs deployed at Rabat and Cape Town. In addition, the levelized cost of electricity of the mobilized photovoltaics is 0.074 $/kWh and 0.099 $/kWh lower than that of the fixed photovoltaics in Case 1. However, the levelized cost of electricity of the mobilized photovoltaics in Case 2 is 0.011 $/kWh higher that of the fixed photovoltaics. The analysis results indicate that deploying transferable PV between high latitude regions in the northern and southern hemispheres has good technical and economic benefits.