New industry standard could reduce solar costs by 50 percent
July 12, 2013 | By
Barbara Vergetis Lundin
The price of solar could soon drop further with the release of an industry standard that will decrease photovoltaic inverter costs. The standard will be the first for distributed power architecture that supports interoperability among PV component suppliers. The HDPV (high definition photovoltaic) Alliance, which strives to reduce photovoltaic (PV) balance of system (BOS) costs while increasing energy production from PV plants, has published its HDPV Inverter Standard, containing the protocols to help PV inverter manufacturers optimize product functionality to deliver up to twice the rated output power to reduce inverter costs by up to 50 percent. Interoperability standards like this take advantage of distributed power conversion (DPC) architectures and make it easy for project developers and integrators to identify and source products that provide the advantage of HDPV. "HDPV's Inverter Standard gives suppliers and customers alike a structured compliance mechanism for understanding and assuring the requirements of interconnectivity and interoperability will be met both now and over time as products and technologies evolve," said David Devir, HDPV Alliance Interoperability Committee chair. "Through defined standards, tested compatibility, and shared best practices, HDPV is building and marketing a strong member network of HDPV compatible suppliers and confident buyers." This standard is the first in a series that will ensure end-to-end compatibility among components involved in distributed power architecture. "The solar industry faces intense pressure to drive down costs, and a distributed power architecture provides a viable solution," said HDPV Alliance Chair Mark Kanjorski. "Both buyers and technology suppliers want to have standards so that components come together seamlessly within this optimized system architecture." For more: Related Articles: Sign up for our FREE newsletter for more news like this sent to your inbox! © 2013 FierceMarkets. All rights reserved. http://www.fierceenergy.com |