The photovoltaic energy manager at Fronius do Brasil, Alexandre Borin, announced in the Solar Talk, podcast made by Canal Solar, the company will launch two new inverters in the country in the first quarter of 2021: the Tauro, developed for unprotected outdoor areas – with a focus on solar plant projects larger than 1 MW – and the GEN24, a hybrid inverter with integrated reserve power.
According to Borin, Tauro is a commercial inverter for high yields, even under extreme environmental conditions such as heat, cold or dust. The design is flexible and minimizes BOS (Balance of System) costs. In addition, it has a double-walled front cover and active cooling, which allows it to be placed in direct sunlight, ensuring continuous performance.
“Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, we had to delay the launch of the product on the market. It was scheduled for the second half of this year, but we will commercialize it at the beginning of next year. Fronius has been developing this product for around three years in order to launch it with the highest quality and robustness possible, always aiming for the lowest failure rate and best after-sales service. Without a doubt, the Tauro will be a sales success in Brazil and around the world”, said the executive.
According to him, Brazil is one of the markets that most demand this type of inverter, mainly due to remote generation, which developed significantly from 2019 to 2020.
The GEN24 hybrid model has devices that can be single-phase or three-phase and has an integrated basic network reserve – a socket that is supplied with energy during periods of power outages – which ensures that consumers can continue to operate even without a battery.
“In Europe, GEN24 is now being launched in the second half of the year. It already has a series of improvements in hardware and software, for example. Therefore, we have this product ready for evolution in the market”, commented the expert, highlighting that hybrid systems are the evolution of photovoltaic systems in Brazil.
Inverter Market
According to Alexandre Borin, the inverter is the brain of the photovoltaic system. “All load management, storage, energy injection into the grid, all of this will be done inside the inverter. As the years go by, it is important that inverters are prepared for the changes that will occur.”
The executive also highlighted that the Brazilian photovoltaic market will move from this current scenario, of generating energy and injecting it into the grid, to a system where loads can be handled in a more intelligent way. “In other words, you will first size your energy production, not only to inject into the grid, but to feed your own loads”, he explained.
Solar energy sector grows in Brazil
For the photovoltaic energy manager at Fronius do Brasil, the Brazilian solar market is developing very quickly. “A segment that grows 300% per year is something rare to find today. There are few countries that have shown such rapid growth as Brazil, due to the attractiveness that the business represents here in the country. We have a very quick return on investment, especially in distributed generation – between three and five years. So, for a photovoltaic generator that will last almost 20 years, the return is fantastic”, he highlighted.
He highlights that, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the market experienced a certain retraction, however, in June, the sector already began to show a recovery. “At least for Fronius it was like that. Today, solar is the most democratic energy possible. Anyone can become a producer of their own energy, just have a free area to be exposed to the sun, be it a roof or some land. Brazil has enormous potential, a solarimetric index much higher than other markets.”
future
According to the executive, solar energy is the source of the future. “There is a natural movement, in the coming decades, towards decentralization of the electrical system. So, solar is very much in line with this movement of decentralization, of reducing the size of plants. It no longer makes sense to produce such large plants, like Itaipu, because of the cost,” he concluded.
