From pv magazine France
Switzerland's Federal Office of Transport (FOT) has given a permit to the country's first removable solar power plant to be deployed on a railway line.
The project is being developed by Swiss startup Sun-ways, which plans to begin deploying the system next year, on a 100-m linear section of the 221 railway operated by transN, the public transport company of the canton of Neuchâtel.
The pilot system will rely on 48 panels with each an output of 380 W and their combined capacity will be 18 kW. The project will be built at a cost of €621,800 ($685,920) and will inject power into the local grid.
Local electricity provider Viteos and DG-Rail, a company specializing in railway electrical installations, will partner with Sunways in the project construction.
In the summer of 2023, the Federal Office of Transport initially rejected the request as a precautionary measure, as it did not have any technical references about the proposed technology.
Supported by industrial partners, Sunways called on two professors of mechanics from the Haute Ecole d'Ingénierie et de Gestion du Canton de Vaud (HEIG-VD) to carry out an independent assessment on specially designed prototypes. Then, Geste Engineering, a Swiss specialist in large-scale railway engineering projects, conducted a technical and safety analysis. Its objective was to demonstrate that the system is perfectly compatible with the FOT's safety criteria, as the pilot installation will operate on a railway line open to rail traffic.
“As controversies grow around the installation of solar power plants in the Alps, Sunways technology could provide a relevant response and the necessary increase in solar-powered electricity production,” the company said. “Indeed, it exploits an unused space without disrupting train traffic or maintenance and inspection work on the tracks.”
The company explained that the solar modules can be installed manually or mechanically using a railway machine specially designed by Scheuchzer SA, an expert in railway maintenance, which said it can install up to 1,000 m2 of solar panels per day. In addition, the solar power plant is removable and can be removed to allow maintenance work.
The authorization issued by the OFT is subject to several technical conditions including that concerning a series of additional tests and measurements to be carried out throughout the operation of the pilot project. This is expected to ensure that there will be no harmful impacts on the railway infrastructure.
Similarly, removal and installation tests will be carried out to demonstrate that the Sunways pilot installation is perfectly adapted to the constraints related to maintenance work and the operation of the line. These tests will be carried out under the supervision of RM voie ferrée, a company specializing in inspections and railway safety.
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Why? And so expensive, $38/Wp!
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€621,800 for a 18kw pv system? That’s astronomic money , surely you got your numbers wrong.
So what would the resulting high voltage be??? And anyone can remove the panels??? All I see is someone getting shocked or steal the panels….
It’s a idea that makes only slightly more sense that solar (bicycle) roads.
It only takes one quick glanced in your average rail track to see that it’s typically not the cleanest place to place solar panels.
Add this to the fact that horizontal placed panels are not power efficient and vibrations of passing trains can damage the panels. This will, like solar roads, end in nothing
How can these panels NOT hinder maintenance and inspections? Last time I looked at a railroad system there were individual railroad ties. Can the panels just be lifted up by one man so he can visually inspect the ties?
Free solar panels just laying on the ground!? Nice!
Great, another solar frikkin roadways failure in the making.
What a waste of resources. Solar roads, paths, tracks… it is all a scam.
Just put the panels on a roof for 10% the cost and call it a day.