General Framework
The Norwegian electricity system is mainly supplied by hydropower. Increased usage
and very little increase in production, i.e. new power plants, has lead to growing
import. Increased import of fossil based electricity has increased the interest
in renewable electricity production, such as wind and small hydro, but also in
bioenergy as a substitute to electric space heating. There has also been an increased
interest in research and development of ocean energy, such as wave and tidal.
Norway has no public schemes for supporting PV systems. Due to this, there are few large PV systems, and the main market for PV in Norway continues to be related to off-grid recreational applications and special areas such as lighthouses and telecom.
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National Programme
The energy research programme “Renergi” (www.renergi.com) in the Norwegian Research Council funds industry oriented research, basic research and socio-economic research within the energy field, including renewable energy sources. The total funds for PV-related R&D projects were approximately 6 MNOK for 2005. Most of the R&D projects are focused on the silicon chain from feedstock to solar cells.
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Research and Development
There are four main R&D groups in the institute sector of Norway:
- NTNU (Norwegian University of Science and Technology) Trondheim: 3 PhD studies. Focusing on silicon feedstock, refining and crystallisation.
- SINTEF Trondheim and Oslo: Focus on silicon feedstock, refining, crystallisation, sawing and material characterization.
- Agder University College: Research on silicon feedstock with Elkem. Energy park with PV, solar heat collectors, heat pump, heat storage and electrolyser for research on hybrid systems.
- IFE (Institute of Energy Technology): 3 PhD studies; second hand pilot line for solar cells recently acquired and installed. Supporting industry (Scan Cell and others).
At SINTEF Architecture and Buildings, PV research has mainly been conducted
in "Smartbygg", a strategic research program in cooperation with NTNU. The project
seeks to develop energy efficient building systems of the future. One project
activity is innovative use of solar cells in buildings, where the solar cells
are integrated in the building structure and energy system. In 2005, this research
group joined PVPS Task 10. Within the framework of Task 10 “Urban Scale PV Applications,”
Subtask 2: “Planning, Design and Development,” Norway is responsible for developing
a computer based tool for analysing the integration of PV in the built environment.
The work was initiated in 2005. The pilot version of the tool consists of two
sections. The first section aims at determining the overall potential for applying
PV in the analysis area. This section includes parameters related to solar exposure,
overall energy profiles, and financial opportunities. By going through this
first section, the user can get a rough overview of whether or not PV is a promising
option for his/her development project. If the answer is yes, the user proceeds
to the second part of the tool. This part consists of a more detailed analysis
of the PV integration, including evaluation of architectural issues, energy
system issues, constructional issues, economic issues, and added values like
image, education, and environmental issues.
Thus, the tool includes support in evaluating both qualitative and quantitative criteria related to the integration of PV in the built environment. A key feature of the tool is the evaluation assistance through a database of benchmarks and best practise examples from reference projects around the world.
SINTEF Materials and Chemistry has substantial activity related to photovoltaics and solar cell technology. The activities are centred around two aspects; - new sources and production methods for silicon to solar cell applications and - fundamental research on materials for photovoltaics. In their work on new sources for feedstock to the solar cell industry, they are involved in a number of EU projects and programmes in collaboration with European industry, universities and research institutes. Here can specifically be mentioned the strategic targeted project FoXy, within the 6th Framework, which is coordinated by SINTEF and has a wide range of participants from across Europe.
Within the field of photovoltaic materials research SINTEF works in close collaboration with the rapidly growing Norwegian industry in this sector, with financial support from the Norwegian Research Council. Norway's main industrial partners in this field are Elkem, REC and REC-ScanWafer, while NTNU and IFE are Norway's main partners on the R&D side. In particular, the project Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells - Cost Reduction can be mentioned. In this project, fundamental research on silicon as a photovoltaic material is conducted in order to lower the cost of electricity from solar cells. The project is supported by the RENERGI program within the Norwegian Research Council.
SINTEF Materials and Chemistry has together with NTNU invested in advanced laboratory facilities for the production as well as characterization of silicon based materials for solar cell applications. A unique pilot furnace with a total charge of 12 kg Si for directional solidification of silicon ingots, together with advanced characterization equipment covers the chain from raw materials to characterized wafers. This includes dedicated optical scanning equipment for crystal defect studies in silicon wafers (PVScan).
In cooperation with Fraunhofer-ISE and Aescusoft Automation in Freiburg, Germany, SINTEF is developing advanced characterization equipment for the study on the lifetime of minority charge carriers based on the CDI principle.
SINTEF Materials and Chemistry work in collaboration with IFE which runs a pilot line for the processing of solar cells from wafers and together, they cover the whole production chain from raw materials to solar cells.
Agder University College has an Energy Park, which includes a 20 kW photovoltaic
array, consisting of 10 kW amorphous cells and 10 kW multicrystalline cells.
The focus of this installation has so far been demonstration of an integrated
energy system, and the power produced by the PV-system has mostly been inverted
and fed to the local electricity grid.
Institute for Energy Technology (IFE) is a private research foundation with about 550 employees. IFE's activity on solar electricity is comprehensive involving 15 persons; covering basic research on feedstock of silicon, process development, process optimization, processing and characterization of silicon solar cells, and finally modelling and analysis of integrated PV-systems. IFE has a full inline solar cell processing line for silicon based solar cells. In addition, advanced characterization laboratories for material, electrical and optical properties are also present.
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Implementation
The main market for PV in Norway continues to be related to off-grid applications. This refers to both the leisure market (cabins, leisure boats) and the professional market (primarily lighthouses/lanterns along the coast and telecommunication systems).
Up to 1992, the leisure market, dominated by new installations in cottages and recreational homes grew rapidly. After 1992, this market slowed down due to saturation. However, some cabins have been fitted with additional power to serve new demands such as TV and refrigeration. Since the first installations are now more than 30 years old, it will probably make sense to begin replacing systems, rather than doing maintenance. Still however, there are not many reports about customers wanting to replace old installations with new ones. Most sales are only for new installations or expansions.
In the 1990s, PV powered coastal lighthouses emerged as a significant new market. Even north of 70°, lighthouses may be powered by PV, provided the battery bank has sufficient capacity. The programme was launched by the Norwegian Coastal Administration in 1982 and was completed in 2000-2001. Approximately 1 840 installations with a total of 3 600 modules are now supplying lighthouses and coastal lanterns along the Norwegian coast. The smallest are equipped with one single module of 60 W, the largest with arrays counting up to 88 modules. A large number of the systems are powered by 3 to 4 modules of 60 W. The average is 135 W per installation. The cumulative installed PV power capacity is 215 kW. The installations are equipped with battery banks (NiCd) with spare capacity ranging from 10 to 120 days and mean lifetime of 20 years. In the future, solar power will be combined with other renewable energy technologies in hybrid systems. The Coastal Authority is presently testing small wind turbines in combinations with PV. Solutions including fuel cells are also being considered.
Norway does not have any incentive schemes supporting the installation of PV systems, and consequently, there are very few grid-connected systems. However, some building integrated installations are, however, been built during the last few years. Among these are NTNU in Trondheim (16 kW), the BP administration building in Stavanger (approximately 16 kW), the low-energy dwelling at Hamar (2,2 kW) and a private dwelling in Bergen (1,2 kWp). Other projects being planned or built are:
- Vest Agder Clinic in Kristiansand: The PV system consists of a total of 48 modules arranged in two strings of 24 modules each. The module brand is GETEK PVP102012, made by GPV in Sweden. Each module has a 102 Wp capacity (12V). There are two inverters, one for each string, type SMA Sunnyboy 2 100. The PV system is connected to the grid through two 16 A circuits. The system was made operational in February 2004, with an expected power production of 5 000 kWh/year (see www.pvnord.org).
- New opera house in Oslo: The most exciting building integrated project currently being planned is the use of transparent double glass modules on the 400 sqm southern façade of the new Opera house of Norway, to be located in the Oslo Harbour area, see picture. This is part of an EU project EcoCulture.
- Det Norske Veritas (DNV) outside Oslo: The ongoing DNV project "Høvik Feasibility and Demo" includes a solar cell panel installation at DNV headquarters. The project has obtained funding from Enova (Norwegian Energy Agency). The goal of the Høvik Feasibility and Demo Project is to prepare a strategy for changing the energy usage at the DNV headquarters in Høvik towards more sustainable energy solutions. A conceptual design of viable renewable energy technologies is being developed for implementation at Høvik.
Contributing to this goal, solar cell panels and ancillary equipment has been purchased and roof mounted at DNV headquarters in February 2005 to provide an estimated annual production of 1 900 kWh. The electricity generated is utilized in the existing charging units for electric cars. A real-time monitoring system is being installed to allow close tracking and analysis of both energy production and operational behaviour.
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Industry Status
Elkem Solar (ES) was established in 2001 and its main objective is to develop a process for feedstock to solar cell production. With the developed metallurgical route, ES has the potential to be an important player in this market. During the last year of development, feedstock from ES has been tested industrially. Silicon from ES (ES-Si) has been mixed with standard feedstock in the range 25 to 65 per cent, and the obtained solar cell efficiencies are similar to what is obtained with standard charge. Results from these tests have been published at 19th EUPVSEC in Paris, June 2004 and the latest at the 31st IEEE PV Specialist Conference in Orlando, Florida, USA, January 3rd to 7th this year. Cell efficiencies above 16 per cent have been demonstrated. From being a research organization, ES is now building up production capabilities. The first production plant will be a pilot scale unit planned to start operation in third quarter of 2005. The next development phase is a production unit with a minimum capacity of 2500 MT/year.
Renewable Energy Corporation (REC) is a significant player in the international solar energy industry. From the headquarters and R&D centre at Hövik outside the Norwegian capital of Oslo, subsidiaries are operated on three continents. REC is the only company in the world that covers the whole value chain of solar energy - from the manufacturing of solar grade polysilicon feedstock to the marketing of photovoltaic systems to the consumer.
The value chain from silicon feedstock to solar systems, based on multicrystalline silicon wafers, consists of 6 distinct production steps.
The research staff in Solar Grade Silicon is now conducting experimental tests
in a pilot 200 ton/year fluid bed reactor (FBR) built in 2004 by Solar Grade
Silicon. The experiments will study reactor design, further scale-up and process
parameters for production of polysilicon from silane. The goal of the research
is to determine the design of a commercial reactor for large-scale production
of PV feedstock. REC Scanwafer is currently expanding its plant NR. 3 in south
of Norway (Porsgrunn) started up 2003 and is ready to invest in a twin plant
on the neighbour area. REC Scanwafers total capacity (silicon wafers) when these
expansions are completed is estimated at ~ 450 MW/year against a capacity of
200 MW/year at year-end 2004. Further expansions are being prepared for the
West-Coast of Norway in the Aardal industrial area. REC Scancell in Narvik produced
20 MW of solar cell in 2005.
Production capacity was more than doubled to 45 MW by building a second production line. REC Scanmodule in Arvika, Sweden produced about 12 MW of modules. Major expansion of production capacity will be built during Q1 of 2006.
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Further reading about Norway
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