Details
Half-day course
CPD Credit: 3.5 hours; Competence/s: 2
Course Overview
This course is to provide an entry level
understanding of the solar market in Ireland & Great Britain and the
technical requirements of solar projects. The key objective is to provide
participants with sufficient knowledge to engage with the solar market,
identify key areas of interest and to provide sufficient foundation across
multiple areas to support further learning. The technical aspects of the course
are aimed at an audience with no prior knowledge of solar.
Course Programme
Topics include:
- Introduction:
- Basic
principles of solar technology to provide the context and baseline
understanding required for the course;
- A review
of solar deployment compared to other technologies;
- Solar technology:
- Key
components of a solar system and how these are assembled into a solar facility;
- Electrical
infrastructure, DC and AC systems;
- Monitoring
and control systems;
- Design
Considerations:
- Solar
resource;
- Panel
design details;
- Shading;
- IV
curves for various configurations;
- Site
layout implications;
- Advantages
and disadvantages of different design choices;
- Degradation
and Lifecycle Planning :
- Panel
degradation and inverter lifespan;
- Planning
for degradation and lifecycle strategies;
- Warranties.
- Yield
Assessment and Solar Resource Forecasting:
- Tools
for yield assessment
- Operational
monitoring of yield
- Other
operational monitoring tools
- Overview
of the different coupling configurations;
- Project
selection considerations
- Questions
and Comments on Technology
- Development
into Construction into Operations:
- Review
of public perceptions and feedback after construction
- Construction
risks;
- Key
parties for solar asset management;
- Key
technical inputs of O&M contracts, e.g. response times, performance
guarantees and maintenance of spare parts.Operational risks;
- Lessons
learned and systemic fault examples;
- End of
life;
- Safety
and Insurance:
- Review
of solar risk factors (safety of personnel and public safety);
- Review
of solar risk factors (insurance loss);
- Emerging
Trends:
- Pricing
and PPA developments;
- Bifacial
panels;
- Battery
storage;
- Introduction
to battery storage and why it suits solar
- Components
- Connection
configurations
- What to
consider when co-locating battery and solar
- Questions
& comments on technology and Project Development
During the training the trainer
will be happy to answer relevant questions and a Question and Answer (Q&A)
session will conclude the course. Following the course, the key materials will
be distributed to the participants.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this course, delegates should be
able to:
- Introduce solar technology in power systems, and provide
context for BESS compared to global EV and pumped hydro industries;
- Demystify the terminology surrounding solar by defining key
terms and acronyms, detailing the technical concepts for a non-technical
audience;
- Provide an understanding of how solar can be best utilised to enable
the renewable energy transition;
- Provide an understanding of the commercial relevance of
different design and technology choices, including those currently
utilised and those expected to be commercially viable/available in the
near future;
- Provide an understanding of project-level considerations as the
Irish market continues to move towards a higher penetration of renewable
generation;
- Aim to ensure participants gain sufficient understanding of the
development and construction processes for solar projects to engage in
meaningful discussion with developers and contractors operating in the
market.
Who Should Attend
The training will be targeted at an audience new to energy storage with an interest to operate in the Irish market. The level of detail will be aimed at a non-technical audience or an audience new to energy storage and will aim to provide an introduction to the Irish market for local and international developers.
Trainer's Profile
John O’Toole
The training will be delivered by John O’Toole, Head of Commercial Operations at Field Energy. John is a Chartered Engineer and has over 25 years of experience in the energy sector in Ireland and the UK. He has worked in gas-fired generation operations (CHP and CCGT) in Ireland, and in wind, solar and BESS development and operations in the UK.
John is accustomed to providing training sessions on a wide variety of technical and commercial topics, and focusses on communicating the key drivers of the topic at hand so that technical and non-technical audiences can build a solid basis of understanding to support further learning and experience.
Engineers Ireland supports the Sustainable Development Goals. This event contributes to Engineers Ireland's Sustainability Framework.
Please contact the CPD Training Team for further information on scheduled course dates and In-Company options.