Few people still working in the industry today likely remember the earliest solar production facilities, which operated more like traditional generation plants than their modern counterparts. Unlike those old sites, using solar collectors to produce steam and turn turbines, today’s operations are nearly entirely digital.
As the solar plants have changed, so, too, have their operations, which Emerson’s James Fraser explores in a recent article in North American Clean Energy magazine. One primary change has been that as the size and scope of solar farms has increased, tight control has become more critical. It’s no longer possible to shove as many megawatts onto the grid as possible without taking steps to balance energy input and output. Today, solar is generating enough capacity to have a significant impact on the grid.
“In some states, solar can account for up to 30% of generation, which means solar energy operators need dynamic control strategies—including curtailment, power system stabilization, variability management, and more—to prevent brownouts and surges.”
So how do operators manage? Those that are having the most success are leveraging purpose-built software and algorithm-based digital control. Modern renewable energy software solutions like Emerson’s Ovation™ Green portfolio harness digital technology to respond quickly to the grid’s ever-changing needs.
Regulation drives requirements
As organizations like the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) are increasing their requirements for accurate reporting, more operators are coming under increased pressure to streamline their reporting systems to ensure accurate and timely records. But this isn’t as easy as it may seem. First and foremost, solar producers—in contrast to traditional utilities—have far more generating resources across their fleets that they must incorporate into plant reports. Further complicating the issue, many of the facilities where these resources are located typically employ little or no staff, so most sites don’t have access to the NERC reporting groups that are common at traditional generators.
Because reporting needs to happen—and be accurate—regardless of limited personnel or an overabundance of assets, many organizations are turning to software to help manage the load. James explains,
“Digitalization is essential for efficient, effective operation. Remote teams need an automated system to collect, classify, and automatically generate GADS reporting information. Instead of requiring an operator to collect data from multiple assets and manually generate reports, SCADA systems with built-in GADS reporting automatically associate NERC codes to classify events as they occur, making it easy to pull the events into reports.”
With software automatically collecting, collating, and organizing data, solar generators have far less concern that they will be missing critical records or that records will be incorrect or out-of-date.
Turning complexity into competitive advantage
Fit-for-purpose software also helps teams manage the complexity of their operations. As more solar sites work in tandem with battery storage, and as teams add forecasting and market research to their operating strategies to develop the best economic outcomes, they need assistance to navigate the many new variables necessary for operation. The best software solutions can help manage this complexity. James shares,
“Automation solution providers with decades of experience in the power industry have been developing these systems—and the associated algorithms—for many years. They will continually update those solutions as the requirements of the industry change, helping producers continually lock in competitive advantage, even in the face of changing markets.”
Control solutions like Emerson’s Ovation 4.0 provide a single automation platform with real-time data, enabling operators to keep pace with rapidly changing markets, providing the insights they need to work smarter, better and faster.
In the full article over at North American Clean Energy, James goes into more detail with some specific examples illustrating ways modern solar operations differ from traditional energy generators and shares more ways software and digitalization help them navigate the increasing complexity.
