Solar on Water: Examining the Feasibility of Floating PV at Bhakra Nangal Dam

In today’s world, there are methods for efficiently harnessing solar energy. The floating photovoltaic power plant is designed for the Bhakra Nangal Dam, utilizing a 16.02 MWp on-grid system. The work focuses on optimizing the placement of floating photovoltaic panels to enhance efficiency and system performance. The site selection process employs potential analysis, revealing a global horizontal irradiance (GHI) of 1549.5 kWh/m2 and a water depth of 521 m. The configuration of the floating solar power plant consists of 29,130 panels, arranged in 15 series with 42 strings of solar panels attached to 10 units of a 1500 kW inverter. Four different models are simulated, based on the placement of modules, among which Model 4 is selected. The simulation results for Model 4 indicate that the system operates with a capacity factor of 14.45% and a performance ratio of 74.47%.