A FIRST-TIME STUDY ON LONG-TERM PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF PHOTOVOLTAIC (PV) PLANTS AT BHIMAVARAM (LATITUDE- 16.540 N, LONGITUDE- 81.520 E, MSL 7 M), INDIA

This study evaluates the daily, monthly, and annual performance of roof-top 200 KWp grid-interactive solar PV power plants installed atop Sri Vishnu Educational Society buildings in India. This plant generated ~ 300,000 units/ year, with a maximum yielding of ~800 KWh/ day during summer (March-June) and a minimum during the rainy season (July-September, ~ 600 KWh/ day). 1237 ton of CO2 emissions were avoided and $2,10,000 was made. As a result, the payback took 7-8 years to complete. The statistical study revealed a minimum (1%-15%) drop in power yielding, which indicates this plant used high-standard solar cells (polycrystalline), sophisticated inverters, top-quality molded case circuit breakers, and others. The optimal level of power output generation, V-I characteristics and power and economic graphs were predicted using a simulation study. Inter-institutional comparisons made with new 302.4 KWp power plants show an identical daily pattern, albeit 302.54 KWp power plant yieldings oftentimes show marginal magnitudes.