Solar Energy Production for a Decarbonization Scenario in Spain

Solar energy is one of the most promising sources of energy that could be used to address distributed supply problems. Global warming and decarbonization are significant global concerns, particularly for countries that are not fossil fuel providers. This paper presents a study focused on Spain, a co...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Sánchez Durán, Rafael, Barbancho Concejero, Julio, Luque Rodríguez, Joaquín
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2019
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Sevilla (US)
Repositorio:idUS. Depósito de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla
OAI Identifier:oai:idus.us.es:11441/97801
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/11441/97801
https://doi.org/10.3390/su11247112
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Solar photovoltaic energy
Renewable energies
Demand forecasting
Decarbonization
Descripción
Sumario:Solar energy is one of the most promising sources of energy that could be used to address distributed supply problems. Global warming and decarbonization are significant global concerns, particularly for countries that are not fossil fuel providers. This paper presents a study focused on Spain, a country with a favorable location with respect to horizontal irradiance. The study addresses the future energy demand forecast and how photovoltaic energy could supply an important part of electricity needs. Our approach focuses on two analyses. First, several traditional statistical techniques are discussed in order to obtain a model that best suits Spanish energy demand forecasts for the future years. Di erent algorithms are compared in order to determine which is the most appropriate for the considered purpose. Second, the evolution of solar photovoltaic technology in Spain is analyzed. The latitude of Spanish cities makes them suitable for utilizing this kind of technology. In this sense, seasonal and monthly trends are identified with high levels of detail, considering a large historical dataset. The increase of the capacity of electricity generation based on this procedure is evaluated. Finally, a discussion about matching electricity demand forecasts and photovoltaic production is o ered. Considering the selected model for the photovoltaic power of Spain, from 5 to 42GWin 2030, the Spanish production is determined as 81 TWh. The obtained results suggest that a possible energy transition is feasible. However, some challenges have to be considered, such us the design of an e ective strategy to store excess energy produced when generation is higher than electricity demand. In this way, the electrical distribution system could be fed by the stored energy when solar energy production is deficient.