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A global inventory of photovoltaic solar energy generating units

Author

Listed:
  • L. Kruitwagen

    (University of Oxford)

  • K. T. Story

    (Descartes Labs Inc)

  • J. Friedrich

    (World Resources Institute)

  • L. Byers

    (World Resources Institute)

  • S. Skillman

    (Descartes Labs Inc)

  • C. Hepburn

    (University of Oxford)

Abstract

Photovoltaic (PV) solar energy generating capacity has grown by 41 per cent per year since 20091. Energy system projections that mitigate climate change and aid universal energy access show a nearly ten-fold increase in PV solar energy generating capacity by 20402,3. Geospatial data describing the energy system are required to manage generation intermittency, mitigate climate change risks, and identify trade-offs with biodiversity, conservation and land protection priorities caused by the land-use and land-cover change necessary for PV deployment. Currently available inventories of solar generating capacity cannot fully address these needs1–9. Here we provide a global inventory of commercial-, industrial- and utility-scale PV installations (that is, PV generating stations in excess of 10 kilowatts nameplate capacity) by using a longitudinal corpus of remote sensing imagery, machine learning and a large cloud computation infrastructure. We locate and verify 68,661 facilities, an increase of 432 per cent (in number of facilities) on previously available asset-level data. With the help of a hand-labelled test set, we estimate global installed generating capacity to be 423 gigawatts (−75/+77 gigawatts) at the end of 2018. Enrichment of our dataset with estimates of facility installation date, historic land-cover classification and proximity to vulnerable areas allows us to show that most of the PV solar energy facilities are sited on cropland, followed by aridlands and grassland. Our inventory could aid PV delivery aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals.

Suggested Citation

  • L. Kruitwagen & K. T. Story & J. Friedrich & L. Byers & S. Skillman & C. Hepburn, 2021. "A global inventory of photovoltaic solar energy generating units," Nature, Nature, vol. 598(7882), pages 604-610, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:598:y:2021:i:7882:d:10.1038_s41586-021-03957-7
    DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-03957-7
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    Cited by:

    1. Ding, Feng & Yang, Jianping & Zhou, Zan, 2023. "Economic profits and carbon reduction potential of photovoltaic power generation for China's high-speed railway infrastructure," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    2. Chen, Qi & Li, Xinyuan & Zhang, Zhengjia & Zhou, Chao & Guo, Zhiling & Liu, Zhengguang & Zhang, Haoran, 2023. "Remote sensing of photovoltaic scenarios: Techniques, applications and future directions," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 333(C).
    3. Dewi, Retno Gumilang & Siagian, Ucok Welo Risma & Asmara, Briantama & Anggraini, Syahrina Dyah & Ichihara, Jun & Kobashi, Takuro, 2023. "Equitable, affordable, and deep decarbonization pathways for low-latitude developing cities by rooftop photovoltaics integrated with electric vehicles," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 332(C).
    4. Zhixin Zhang & Min Chen & Teng Zhong & Rui Zhu & Zhen Qian & Fan Zhang & Yue Yang & Kai Zhang & Paolo Santi & Kaicun Wang & Yingxia Pu & Lixin Tian & Guonian Lü & Jinyue Yan, 2023. "Carbon mitigation potential afforded by rooftop photovoltaic in China," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-12, December.
    5. Shenghang Wang & Shen Tan & Jiaming Xu, 2023. "Evaluation and Implication of the Policies towards China’s Carbon Neutrality," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-15, April.
    6. Honghai Yu & Xianfeng Hao & Liangyu Wu & Yuqi Zhao & Yudong Wang, 2023. "Eye in outer space: satellite imageries of container ports can predict world stock returns," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-16, December.
    7. Mao, Hongzhi & Chen, Xie & Luo, Yongqiang & Deng, Jie & Tian, Zhiyong & Yu, Jinghua & Xiao, Yimin & Fan, Jianhua, 2023. "Advances and prospects on estimating solar photovoltaic installation capacity and potential based on satellite and aerial images," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 179(C).
    8. Farah Mneimneh & Hasan Ghazzawi & Seeram Ramakrishna, 2023. "Review Study of Energy Efficiency Measures in Favor of Reducing Carbon Footprint of Electricity and Power, Buildings, and Transportation," Circular Economy and Sustainability,, Springer.
    9. Xiao Xu & Teng Zhang & Ziwen Qiu & Hui Gao & Sanli Zhu, 2023. "A Method Based on NGO-HKELM for the Autonomous Diagnosis of Semiconductor Power Switch Open-Circuit Faults in Three-Phase Grid-Connected Photovoltaic Inverters," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-25, June.
    10. Hu, Wei & Bradbury, Kyle & Malof, Jordan M. & Li, Boning & Huang, Bohao & Streltsov, Artem & Sydny Fujita, K. & Hoen, Ben, 2022. "What you get is not always what you see—pitfalls in solar array assessment using overhead imagery," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 327(C).
    11. Tan, Hongjun & Guo, Zhiling & Zhang, Haoran & Chen, Qi & Lin, Zhenjia & Chen, Yuntian & Yan, Jinyue, 2023. "Enhancing PV panel segmentation in remote sensing images with constraint refinement modules," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 350(C).
    12. Jiang, Hou & Lu, Ning & Yao, Ling & Qin, Jun & Liu, Tang, 2023. "Impact of climate changes on the stability of solar energy: Evidence from observations and reanalysis," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 208(C), pages 726-736.
    13. Li, Chuan & Li, Qi & Ge, Ruihuan, 2023. "Comparison of performance enhancement in a shell and tube based latent heat thermal energy storage device containing different structured fins," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C), pages 994-1006.
    14. Shahryar Jafarinejad & Rebecca R. Hernandez & Sajjad Bigham & Bryan S. Beckingham, 2023. "The Intertwined Renewable Energy–Water–Environment (REWE) Nexus Challenges and Opportunities: A Case Study of California," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-16, July.

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