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Another Productive PV Implementations: The Case of Solar Carports

The necessity of affordable and clean energy consumption and production for a sustainable future for our planet is increasing. Every day, the world's rising population and evolving technologies directly impact the demand for more and more energy.
Scientists and societal movements emphasize the significance of switching to renewable energy sources. Governments, social initiatives, and individuals have been far more attentive and concerned about the energy future, particularly in the recent decade. The United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are critical in bringing disparate stakeholders together.

Electric or hybrid vehicle production, as well as demand for solar carports, have risen in response to sustainable and clean energy goals. Solar carports, on the other hand, do more than only provide energy for charging vehicles. Depending on its capacity and infrastructure, the energy produced is also used by households or facilities nearby. As a result, even though the solar carport industry is currently huge, it is constantly expanding.

In simple terms, solar carports are canopies made by PV panels, that installed facilities ranging from single parking places to large commercial fields such as stadium parking lots, shopping mall parking lots, or any other type of facility.
A solar carport installation is similar to a ground-mounted structure, but there is one major difference. The ground-mounted structure installation does not allow for the utilization of the field under the panels for any other purpose. However, because the panels are mounted higher off the ground, the solar carport construction does not change the land's usage and provides sufficient space for vehicle parking. After the installation, the area is still appropriate for multiple uses.

Large-scale solar carport installations are generally preferred by manufacturing enterprises for commercial usage. Vehicle manufacturers, in particular, are significantly more open to these applications because they have already begun to transition their vehicle production to electric and/or hybrid vehicles. Furthermore, several of them intend to use entirely green energy in their facilities. They already have ample parking for their employees and newly manufactured vehicles. These are ideal areas for solar carport installations.

Solar carports have several advantages for the facilities where they were installed. For instance, PV canopies provide shade for vehicles, and thus, newly manufactured vehicles can be shielded from direct sunlight and change in weather conditions. Or, if the vehicles under the carports are electric or hybrid, they will be able to charge them in the parking lots. Most importantly, depending on the installation's capacity, renewable energy sources can be utilized at all stages of production. As a result, a significant contribution to reducing CO2 emissions can be achieved, and the facility may be totally carbon-free at the same time. Thanks to this version of solar installations, cost-cutting goals would also be met while achieving sustainability goals.

To sum up, considering the limited sources of our planet, we always need to be tented to choose the most productive and creative ways. We must be aware that wasted vast parking lot spots might generate value. This value is not just for the facility but also for the environment and our future.

At INTEC, we reflect our experience and in-house capabilities on solar carport projects, especially for the last two years. We have already installed different solar carports with almost 40 MWp capacity in various fields. To check out our solar carport projects in detailed please visit our Reference.