Based in Groningen, Solarfields is the Dutch market leader for large-scale solar projects since 2014.
The company develops, builds and manages solar projects on ground, water and large rooftops and, at present, manages a portfolio of about 300MW. By 2030, the company aims to contribute to the Dutch government sustainability objectives by providing 1 million Dutch households with green electricity.
In order to keep up with its business growth strategy, Solarfields decided to test BaxEnergy’s 2nd level SCADA solution to monitor and control its PV portfolio in the Netherlands.
A Cloud-based solution to keep PV assets under control
At first, the project will involve the integration in Energy Studio Pro® of 2 power plants with 236 string inverters for a total of 41.86 MW. Eventually, after a positive pilot, the project will comprehend Solarfields’ PV portfolio of 14 power plants producing nearly 300 MW.
The solution will be hosted on Cloud and will allow Solarfields to store the master data of each power plant and generation unit configured in the system, providing real time monitoring, historical data and detailed performance KPI analysis.
As the solution is equipped with a constantly growing number of data analytics tools, Solarfields will have at its disposal powerful tools designed to facilitate the troubleshooting of problems, the advanced analysis of data and the generation of valuable KPIs.
2D and 3D maps to keep a digital eye on PV assets
Energy Studio Pro ® will provide both a micro and macro view of the power plants, allowing to plot, compare and analyze different signals from the same device or signal value trends from multiple devices, performing with ease advanced visual data analysis.
The Dutch company will also have access to 2D and 3D maps displaying real-time inverters and string data on a 2D and 3D CAD layout, thus gaining a detailed “carbon copy” of the assets. Through these tools, Solarfields will be able to visually locate issues on the map, diagnose issues and unregular behaviors, directing on-site technicians to fix immediately the issues.
Remote control for power regulation at a distance
What would it be like to constantly have assets within reach? Remote Control sounds a lot like that.
Energy Studio Pro® is equipped with a module dedicated to remote control which suggests favorable actions to undertake based on power market forecast and over production. Solarfields will thus be able to configure multiple actions as part of specific “remote control scenarios” such as start, stop, reset, power limitation and power regulation as well as the possibility to change set points to prevent over production and energy losses.
Power forecast
Through a holistic approach which integrates data gathering, modelling and predictive analysis – and which is continuously improved by machine learning technologies – Solarfields will have at its disposal a comprehensive solution which allows to forecast information about energy production and optimize O&M processes.
As intelligent algorithms predict wind force and direction, sun irradiance, lightning strikes and production and consumption of energy, companies like Solarfields will be able to take informed decisions in an easier and more efficient way. Among other things, the impact of using power forecasts is huge because it allows Asset Managers to determine when scheduling and executing maintenance, based on the power and price forecast and the defined threshold. The solution will help limit exposure to accidents and reduce sick leaves, overall improving the productivity of our Dutch partner.