Floating solar helps monetise freshwater basin

Monetising a water basin with floating solar

Every greenhouse in the Netherlands is required to have an artificial freshwater basin for watering their operations. Covering these basins is not only essential to reducing water evaporation, but also key to preventing algae growth and pollution of the water. A new floating solar PV technological solution developed and offered by Centrica Business Solutions and Albers Alligator is enabling our greenhouse customer Kwekerij de Noordhoek to monetise the surface area of their freshwater basin by reducing their energy costs, selling solar-generated green electricity to the grid and accessing the Sustainable Energy Transition Subsidy Scheme (SDE++ subsidy) for the next 15 years.

Combining innovation and expertise

Centrica Business Solution and Albers Alligator have joined forces in the Netherlands to bring together all the benefits of solar PV generation and floating basin covers into a state-of-the-art and revolutionary solar PV-enabled floating water basin cover. It combines Centrica Business Solutions’ world-leading solar PV solution with Albers Alligator’s floating water basin cover product, making it now possible to profit from the surface area of artificial freshwater basins.

Solar PV panels are installed and secured on top of an Albers Alligator’s floating water basin cover solution, enabling greenhouses to harvest solar energy from their freshwater basins and generate green electricity on-site. The solar PV panels generate DC (direct current) electricity that is sent to power inverters that convert it into AC (alternating current) electricity which is then fed into the site distribution network for local use and export to the grid.

Green electricity generation from the water

1,031 mono-crystalline bifacial solar PV modules, each with a peak power of 415 watts, are installed on top of a specially designed floating water basin cover. With a total capacity of 428 kWp (kilowatt-peak), this floating solar installation is capable of generating enough green electricity to power 100 households on average. Our greenhouse customer Kwekerij de Noordhoek is now generating electricity that is partially utilised to power its operations and also sold to the grid to generate new revenue.