One 40MW peak solar plant is SMALL by comparison to Nanticoke's 8 Parsons 500MW turbines, but that isn't really the point.
Is Nanticoke operating Ontario Power brand steam turbines? No. OptiSolar is building it to be operated by the OptiSolar Farms Canada subsidiary. This is a manufacturer testing its thin film PV solar and doing so in a manner that will generate it publicity and showcase their product.
The strength of PV solar is small sites distributed near the demand. You eliminate significant distribution losses, increase reliability and you are using a generation method that is extremely low maintenance.
By comparison, Nanticoke Station has about 600 personnel on staff. PV systems will never have failures due to Shaft cracking, rotor blade loss or balancing changes - problems Nanticoke experienced at one time or another. You can put solar on your roof and you don't need to hire a stationary engineer.
I'm not saying that solar power is a cure all for the worlds energy issues. However, I say Kudos to OptiSolar for doing their part in driving solar costs down and thank you to Ontario for having the vision to back this green energy project.
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One 40MW peak solar plant is SMALL by comparison to Nanticoke's 8 Parsons 500MW turbines, but that isn't really the point. Is Nanticoke operating Ontario Power brand steam turbines? No. OptiSolar is building it to be operated by the OptiSolar Farms Canada subsidiary. This is a manufacturer testing its thin film PV solar and doing so in a manner that will generate it publicity and showcase their product. The strength of PV solar is small sites distributed near the demand. You eliminate significant distribution losses, increase reliability and you are using a generation method that is extremely low maintenance. By comparison, Nanticoke Station has about 600 personnel on staff. PV systems will never have failures due to Shaft cracking, rotor blade loss or balancing changes - problems Nanticoke experienced at one time or another. You can put solar on your roof and you don't need to hire a stationary engineer. I'm not saying that solar power is a cure all for the worlds energy issues. However, I say Kudos to OptiSolar for doing their part in driving solar costs down and thank you to Ontario for having the vision to back this green energy project.