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Quality issues raise PV systems’ LCOE more than 20% – HelioVolta

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Quality issues raise PV systems’ LCOE more than 20% – HelioVolta

Projects inspected in the report were graded based on the company’s HelioVolta Quality Standard with a maximum of 1,000 points that gets reduced based on the number, severity and status of issues documented by HelioVolta, while points deducted are set on a percentile basis that varies by project size.

This means that projects that were graded an F (with 599 points or less) had the highest financial impact and could incur an LCOE increase of 21%. Projects with more than 100 points lost and graded B would be affected by a 7% increase in LCOE.

The majority of inspected projects (87%) had major issues requiring urgent corrective action, while nearly one in ten (8%) had critical issues requiring immediate de-energisation.

Across the different types of systems analysed in the report – rooftop, ground-mount, tracker and canopy – tracker systems registered the highest percentage of critical issues with 18%, while rooftop and ground-mounted ones had 8% and 4%, respectively. HelioVolta added that critical issues in tracker systems are largely due to failures in connector and wire management.

“Our modelling reveals that the gap between an A-rated and an F-rated PV system can raise the levelised cost of energy by more than 20%,” said James Nagel, co-founder and CTO of HelioVolta.

“That’s the difference between a profitable asset and one stranded by expiring tax credits. Asset owners who tolerate aggressive EPC cost-cutting can no longer operate profitable portfolios.”

One of the key takeaways from the report is the importance of quality, with a solar project’s financial performance over its lifetime tied to it.


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