The Nederlandse Organisatie voor Toegepast Natuurwetenschappelijk Onderzoek (TNO), a Dutch independent research organisation, has released its analysis of floating PV systems.
The research was conducted on behalf of the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme (PVPS).
Two floating PV plants were compared in the research: a high-density polyethylene (HDPE) supported system in Germany, and a steel and HDPE-supported system in the Netherlands. Theoretical land systems were compared to the floating PV plants.
The findings showed that floating PV systems have a larger carbon footprint than land-based systems, but it is by an almost negligible amount. This is due to the components required for building the floating systems, and their size increase compared to their land-based counterparts.
For southern-orientated systems, this size increase is 25%, and for east-west-orientated systems, it is 15%.
Advantages
The research showed that floating PV’s CO2 emissions 50g/kW-hr of generated electricity, which is a seven times decrease from Germany’s current power mix and a three – times decrease from the EU’s 2030 target.
Additionally, floating PV systems offered the potential to save land space by utilising water instead, enabling them to work alongside hydroelectric plants.
Josco Kester, Scientist Specialist at TNO and co-author of the study said: “Our study of two operating systems in Western Europe shows that floating photovoltaic systems on small inland waters can be a good complement to ground-mounted systems from the point of view of greenhouse gas emissions over the entire life cycle.”
Balancing out
More research into the impact of floating PV systems on aquatic ecosystems has been suggested, to gain a fuller into their impact on the wider environment.
The researchers additionally suggest that, although already small, the carbon footprint of the floating PV systems could be mitigated by:
- Manufacturing modules using electricity from low-emission sources
- Building support structures from recycled materials
- Recycling end-of-life HDPE
Find out more about floating solar PV systems at Solar & Storage Live in Amsterdam in 2025, or find a Solar & Storage Live event near you.
