Amplus Solar: Parameters to Calculate Environmental Attributes

The solar power energy industry is growing at a fast pace. Over the last two years, the share of solar power in the country’s energy mix has been gradually increasing, while that of thermal power has been declining. This would result in a cleaner and greener environment.

In order to measure the positive environmental impact of the solar PV systems owned by Amplus Solar, the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS) developed a proprietary Environment Attributes Calculator (EAC) based on publicly available data and in case not available, based on informed estimates. Environmental attributes are easy recognizable daily activities that use on average a certain amount of energy, or that on average emit or absorb a certain quantity of CO2.

The calculator can be used to visualize how many environmental attributes can be generated/avoided throughout the economic lifespan of the system for the zone where it is built, in order to assess the impact of these systems on the environment. These assessments are based on the latest EAC data.

This assessment is important to calculate the growth of the company, test the solar PV systems and strategize in a way to maximize benefits. According to the EAC, the input parameters used to calculate environmental attributes are:

Equivalencies of the amount of green electricity produced

The amount of green electricity produced can be visualized in various forms. To calculate this the following parameters were:

• Annual electricity usage of urban households in India
• Annual electricity consumption of Indian people
• Apple iPhones charged in one year
• Annual usage of LED bulbs
• Delhi Metro train rides
• Liters of water saved by avoiding the consumption of coal-fired electricity

Equivalencies of the amount of carbon emission avoided

To calculate the CO2 emissions that have been avoided during the system’s lifestyle, the following parameters were used:

• Equivalent number of barrels of oil used
• Equivalent number of liters of gasoline consumed
• Equivalent number of Kilometers a diesel- fuelled rickshaw can make
• Equivalent number of cars driven for one year in Delhi
• Equivalent number of tea seedlings grown for 10 years
• Equivalent number of mature trees absorbing carbons for the systems
• Equivalent number of acres of an average U.S forest absorbing CO2 annually
• Equivalent number of tons of Indian coal burned
• Equivalent number of waste recycled instead of landfilled
• Number of wind turbines installed and in operation for one year

Detailed Result of the Research – https://amplussolar.com/blogs/amplus-solar-output-of-the-research/

Conclusion:

According to the EAC, the 3,894-kWp PV system installed in Bangalore (or other areas with similar geographical and environmental conditions) generates 173, 091,982 kWh of green electricity and it avoids 166,514 tons of CO2 emissions throughout its operating lifetime.