Radiance Surges 10%-20%! Anticipated Growth in Photovoltaic Generation For The UK And Spain

DNV's subsidiary, Solcas, recently published its weekly update report, which includes solar irradiance data collected from various European countries in August this year. The survey reveals that in August, the UK experienced an average irradiance level of 110%, with higher levels in the northern regions. Spain and Portugal also saw increased sunlight irradiance by 10% to 20% due to reduced cloud cover.

August 2023 witnessed a notable anomaly in solar irradiance levels across Europe compared to long-term averages. Data collected through Solcast API showed that sunlight irradiance increased by over 10% in Spain and the UK, primarily due to airflows concentrating over the Scandinavian Peninsula, Central Europe, and the Baltic region. These regions saw sunlight irradiance levels rise above 80% of the August average.

In the UK, the average sunlight irradiance in August was 110%, with even higher levels in the northern regions. Reduced cloud cover allowed Spain and Portugal to experience 10% to 20% higher sunlight irradiance than normal. Typically, at this time of year, a broad band of clouds covers Europe from Spain to the UK, extending south to Greece. However, in August 2023, this cloud band concentrated, allowing sunlight to penetrate narrow gaps between clouds over the UK and Spain. This created the observed sunlight irradiance pattern.

Additionally, Spain experienced extreme weather conditions in August, with wildfires early in the month and heavy rainfall associated with storm activity toward the end. While these events had devastating impacts, they did not diminish sunlight irradiance.

Most parts of the Scandinavian Peninsula had sunlight irradiance levels at 80% of the August average, and Central Europe, from France to Poland, reached only 90% irradiance. Apart from typical airflow cloud effects, these areas were also influenced by cloud cover related to the Hans storm in early August. This storm was the second exceptionally intense summer storm in the region after the Poly storm in July. The concentrated airflow pattern this year may have exacerbated these storms' impacts.

Spain typically had the highest sunlight irradiance in August, and as a result, the increased irradiance in 2023 contrasted sharply with other parts of mainland Europe. Despite the influence of aerosols from wildfires and late August rainfall events, the Iberian Peninsula's photovoltaic generation exceeded 7 kWh/m² in August.

Solcast employs satellite data and proprietary artificial intelligence algorithms with 1-2 km resolution to track global cloud cover and aerosols. This data is used to drive irradiance models, enabling Solcast to calculate high-resolution irradiance with typical deviations of less than 2%. Over 300 companies worldwide, managing over 150 GW of photovoltaic systems, utilize this data for various applications.

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