The Guidelines, developed by the Sustainable Energy Industries Association of the Pacific Islands (SEIAPI) and the Pacific Power Association (PPA), cover several aspects regarding the design and installation of both grid-connected and off-grid photovoltaics (PV) systems.
26 September 2012: The Sustainable Energy Industries Association of the Pacific Islands (SEIAPI) and the Pacific Power Association (PPA) have released four sets of technical guidelines on photovoltaic (PV) systems for the energy industry and power utilities.
The guidelines address both grid-connected and off-grid systems, as well as both design and installation issues. The grid-connected design guidelines cover energy yield, specific yield and performance ratio, inverter selection, and the matching of the array configuration to maximum and minimum inverter operating voltages, while the installation guidelines address PV array mounting, cable selection and protection, metering, and signage. On the off-grid PV power systems, the design guidelines elaborate on load (energy) assessment, battery selection, PV array sizing, inverter selection, controllers, and generators and battery charging, while the installation guidelines cover PV array mounting, battery installation, and cable selection and protection.
SEIAPI and PPA plan on organizing workshops on these guidelines. The next guideline the two organizations will release deals with hybrid power systems.
SEIAPI was launched in November 2010 with financial support from the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP). PPA is an intergovernmental regional organization that was founded by the electricity utilities operating in the Pacific Islands Countries. [REEEP Press Release] [Publiction: Grid-Connected PV Systems: System Design Guidelines] [Publication: Grid-Connected PV Systems: System Installation Guidelines] [Publication: Off Grid PV Power Systems: System Design Guidelines] [Publication: Off Grid PV Power Systems: System Install Guidelines]