SunEdison has announced a global milestone in the company's solar operations as it now has more than 1 gigawatt (GW) of global solar PV (photovoltaic) assets under the management of its Renewable Operations Centers (ROCs).
The facilities managed by the ROCs include a mix of plants that are owned by SunEdison and its investment partners, as well as third parties who have come to SunEdison to utilize its advanced services platform.
SunEdison operates three ROCs providing 24/7 services year round, configured with redundancy to prevent disruption of service. The flagship ROC is at the company's headquarters in Belmont, California, with additional facilities located in Chennai, India and Madrid, Spain.
"Achieving this milestone is a significant moment in our company history," said Mark McLanahan, vice president and general manager for global services for SunEdison.
"When it comes to asset management, SunEdison is in a unique position to serve our customers. We are not just a vendor, we are also an owner/operator of PV solar power plants so we have a first-hand understanding of our customers' requirements, which allows us to bring innovative solutions to market."
Investment Grade Monitoring System
The SunEdison ROCs employ sophisticated monitoring and reporting tools to detect any anomalies in system performance. Technicians can analyse alerts to diagnose the cause and determine the best course of action.
In many cases issues can be resolved remotely, reducing the need to dispatch technicians. SunEdison monitors the full range of components and systems within a solar installation; including weather stations, pyranometers, ambient temperature sensors, panel temperature sensors, inverters, string combiners, recombiners, soiling analysis stations and AC subsystems.
The ROCs' sophisticated analysis capabilities allow SunEdison to transform raw data into rich reports that provide a system-level view of plant performance which helps predict the potential of a power plant, uncover operational issues, and optimize system performance.
For SunEdison customers, an online monitoring portal provides live access to an extensive array of system data, including:
+ Detailed tracking of energy production
+ Measurement of environmental and economic savings
+ Fleet, fund, and site views
+ Invoice creation and printing
+ Proactive Asset Management
Based on plant information collected and analyzed by the ROCs, SunEdison provides comprehensive services to ensure reliable, high yield operations for the life of the assets.
This starts with field service dispatch through a sophisticated work order management tool to administer preventative and corrective maintenance activities. Services also include critical functions such as supplier relationship management, spare parts inventory management, warranty claims administration, and wide-ranging financial services on behalf of project companies.
Additional Services
To reduce the time-consuming burden of billing and incentive reporting the ROC offers energy production reports to support Performance Based Incentive (PBI) and Renewable Energy Credit (REC) programs. Additionally the ROC can host tenant energy billing to support Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs).
