Solar energy generation in the far north

Sweden is well known as a low carbon country and has an approach to energy generation that many countries aspire to.

As a nation, they’ve taken positive steps to sourcing alternatives forms of energy and greatly reducing their reliance on fossil fuels. Today, over 80 percent of their electricity is generated by nuclear, hydro and wind power.  

But, with questions surrounding its reliance on nuclear energy, Sweden is looking to increase its use of renewables. Historically, its focus has been on hydro and wind energy, but this is changing.

Thanks to BayWa r.e. and solar energy installer, JN Solar, the country’s energy providers are seeing the light.  

Together with JN Solar, we’ve delivered a 180 KWH solar installation for one of Northern Sweden’s largest energy generators, Skellefteå Kraft. And overcome many obstacles along the way.

Delivering a solar installation in Northern Sweden doesn’t come without its challenges. Restricted daylight hours, high winds and potential for snow, can make design, logistics and delivery incredibly complicated. In particular, delivering equipment to the site was very challenging as it is located 800 km out of Stockholm.

For JN Solar, the pressure was on to deliver a complex solar system for a new client, Skelleftea Kraft, who was also new to solar installations.

At BayWa r.e., we pride ourselves on going the extra mile with the support we provide to our installer partners. From the very beginning, we worked closely with JN Solar to help carefully specify and design the right system to meet the exacting demands of this project.

To combat the unpredictable weather conditions, we used our own novotegra mounting system. It comes with an East to West configuration and is among the strongest mounting systems available. The product is tested in wind tunnels and able to easily cope with the high winds and snowfall that is common to the region.

Due to the complexities of the location, we also worked closely with solar panel manufacturer, LG, bringing them into the design stage early on.   

We used their new LG NeON 2 solar panels. The bifacial nature of the cells means they can absorb additional energy reflected off the roof onto the back of the solar panel – a perfect solution to combat the shorter daylight hours in Northern Sweden.

Rojmyran was officially opened on the 15th September 2017. The energy generation is impressive. The roof system consists of 540 panels generating an impressive 180 kW.

By adopting a partnership approach, we helped to bring together the combined expertise and experience of the entire supply chain. The end result was a highly successful project for JN Solar and very happy end customer