The Danger of the PV Tracker Short View

For years, solar developers have focused on one thing: the upfront capital expense (CAPEX) of their solar project. In some ways, this is an understandable impulse, but as solar power purchase agreement (PPA) prices hit all-time lows, the competition among EPCs to offer rock bottom CAPEX has been fierce.

While lower upfront CAPEX has been a critical aspect of the industry's growth, it also has meant that some equipment suppliers – including many tracker manufacturers – have tried to gobble up market share by offering low-cost products. Despite the low cost, these products often don't have the proven reliability of top-tier hardware to last the 30+ year design life their owners demand. 
 
Fortunately, the industry viewpoint is beginning to change. Today more developers and financiers are taking a longer-term view of equipment reliability. They are working to understand the implications of their system going down and the significant lifetime costs of corrective maintenance, which can erode already thin margins for plant operators.
 
This webinar will look at the evolution of industry stakeholders and peer more closely at long-term operating expenses (OPEX) in addition to providing the results of the RINA independent engineering report about PV tracker lifetime assessment methodology. The webinar will also introduce PVTrax, RINA's important new assessment tool, and dive into a case study created to help developers, lenders, owners, and EPCs better understand how their choice of tracker impacts their project's lifetime cost and project owner's bottom line.