GoodWe BIPV, a unit of Chinese solar technology manufacturer GoodWe, said its Vela residential solar carport, which features the company’s Polaris building-integrated PV (BIPV) panels, has emerged as an alternative to rooftop and ground-mounted solar systems in Australia and New Zealand.
The Vela carport, which is available in 4.8 kW and 8.0 kW variants, was launched into the Australian and New Zealand markets late last year and since then more than 80 of the units have been installed across the two nations.
While many of those installations have been in residential settings, GoodWe BIPV Business Development Director Apollo Chai said the solar carport is attracting attention from clients seeking an alternative to rooftop solar for small commercial applications.
“A lot of small commercial operations are tenancies, where landlords won’t allow rooftop solar because of potential damage caused by the installation but the solar carport avoids this,” he said. “They can just be bolted into a concrete floor, and once the lease expires, the carport can be removed, relocated, and reused to generate power again.”
Chai said if the Vela system makes economic sense for business owners, able to be listed as an asset, allowing for annual depreciation, and if it is connected to the meter, the business owner can claim small-scale technology certificates (STCs).
The carports have also firmed as an alternative to small ground-mounted systems in rural settings, providing landowners with a renewable energy generation plant that does not lock up land.
“In Australia, by law a fence is required to surround ground-mounted projects which means the piece of the land can be completely wasted,” Chai said. “With the carport, the land underneath the structure remains usable.”
The Vela carport comes in two sizes including the 4.8 kW single variant that measures 6.5 m x 3 m and is mounted on adjustable poles ranging from 3 m to 3.5 m high at the front and 2 m to 2.5 m at the rear. The larger 8.0 kW double unit measures 6.5 m x 5.2 m and is the same height as the smaller carport.
GoodWe said the all-aluminum alloy carports are waterproof and weatherproof and have been designed for easy installation.
“The design is pretty simple, like Lego,” Chai said. “Usually, three people need only four hours to build a single, or six hours for a double.”
The growing interest in the Vela carport system comes as GoodWe prepares to launch more BIPV products into the Australian market.
Australia has the highest installed solar PV capacity per capita in the world and Chai said as the clean energy transition continues, BIPV is expected to play a key role, tipping the market will follow the trajectory seen in Europe, Japan and other developed countries.
“BIPV is definitely going to take off in the next three years in Australia,” he said, adding the manufacturer is planning to unveil a range of new products for residential applications.
“In the next 12 months, we’ll launch more residential BIPV solutions such as the solar patio and the solar pergola to fit the increasing electricity consumption demand from households,” he said.
Those products are in addition to the Galaxy lightweight solar panel that is already available in Australia.
The panel, which weighs 5.6 kg/㎡, and features a close-to-roof design and requires only adhesive-based installation, has been built for low load-bearing roofs and strong wind resistance.
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