Rooftop Solar Power Plant as a Cost-Effective and Environmentally Friendly Energy Investment
By Adi Permana
Editor Vera Citra Utami
BANDUNG, itb.ac.id – On Monday, 5/10/2021, Rara Andria, moderator and UNDP Advisor for Sustainable Energy, started an online webinar titled "Environmentally and Pocket-Friendly Energy Investment," which was followed by statements from Gembong Primadjaya, General Chair of IAITB.
The webinar's first speaker was Safitri Siswono, President Commissioner/Owner of the Jakarta Design Center, a retail building in Central Jakarta that makes use of Rooftop Solar Power Plant
When Safitri examined the Rooftop Solar Power Plant technology and projected the expenditures, it was discovered that the total investments were not greater than the investments made five years earlier. This information indicates that switching to a Solar Power Plant will result in lower costs.
According to Musrifin Zas, Daily Director of Horizon Technology, the PV mini-grid system is categorised into two types: off-grid and hybrid. Off-grid is used in locations where solar energy is used as a source of electrical energy (remote areas that are not linked to PLN), whereas hybrid is used in areas where stable electrical conditions with high reliability are required, typically in production zones.
The purpose of Rooftop Solar Power Plant is to save PLN electricity usage. It is often powered by the on-grid system, which is a PLTS system linked to the PLN network via a Net Metering scheme. Electricity for PLTS will be imported from PLN, while excess power will be exported to PLN.
The savings from utilizing the Solar Power Plant are estimated to be 250 thousand Rupiah per month, with monthly exports of 69.97 kWh, which is 35-45% of the initial cost before utilizing the Solar Power Plant. When the temperature is high, Rooftop Solar Power Plantcan handle the entire energy load. Meanwhile, Solar Power Plant may withstand up to 40% of the energy burden when the weather is cloudy. Furthermore, Solar Power Plant has a rather long warranty.
George Hodi Santoso, Vice President of Marketing for Xurya Daya Indonesia, was the final speaker. According to George, Solar Power Plant provides a renting system for industrial or commercial buildings (Xurya Lease). The total initial costs spent prior to installing Solar Power Plant and after installing solar will be separated into three categories. First, the PLN will be cheaper, then there will be Xurya rental fees, and last, customers will save money.
Reporter: Najma Shafiya (Postharvest Technology, 2020)
Translator: Sekar Dianwidi Bisowarno (Bioengineering, 2019)
