We all know that solar energy is a global trend and is constantly growing. But this is not why companies in the sector should neglect their marketing and sales strategy and think that they are going to be successful in any area.
Therefore, to optimize resources it is essential to recognize the most propitious areas for the installation of solar panels. This is where satellite images come into play, which have become a very useful tool for this key task. We tell you 3 different ways to achieve it and that give results.
Good times for solar energy
2021 was a record year for the installation of solar panels. And it is that during it, 168 GW were installed, doubling the other great renewable source, wind power.
But this was not the only record beaten. In the month of April, the terawatt of solar energy installed worldwide was reached. With a little more perspective, solar capacity has doubled in 3 years, and will reach 2.3 TW in 2025, according to Solar Power Europe.
China and the United States are the main supporters of this energy source. The Asian giant grows annually by 14% and doubles the capacity of the North American. Regarding the latter, it grew no less than 42% in 2021.
For its part, in Europe growth was 33%, reaching 31.8 GW.
In addition, initiatives are also being developed to promote the use of solar energy in developing countries. One of the most notable is the International Solar Alliance (ISA), made up of Europe, the US, the UK, India and the World Bank, among others. It seeks to invest one billion dollars in the development and implementation of photovoltaic energy in these countries.
Which reasons have led us to this situation?
What is the reason for this steep rise in solar energy? To get the answer, we can look at a mix of different factors at the global level.
On the one hand, there are the high prices of energy, which makes many consumers decide on this cheaper alternative.
According to MIT, since 2010 the price of solar energy has fallen by 85%. Something in which the cheaper manufacturing of solar panels has had a lot to do with the construction of more and more units of these.
But geopolitical issues also come into play here, such as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the energy insecurity it has caused.
Finally, we have the clear commitment of public institutions through incentives in the form of aid and subsidies.
For example, in the United States a 26% tax credit is offered on residential and commercial solar systems. In the European Union we can talk about Next Generation subsidies for installations, self-consumption, storage and thermal systems.
3 Ways Solar Companies Can Speed Up Sales With Satellite Imagery
Given this scenario, solar companies are at the right time to have in their hands the best means to succeed in a highly competitive scenario. And, without a doubt, one of them is satellite images. Here you have 3 essential applications of these for it.
1. Show the savings that will be achieved with the placement of solar panels
Demonstrating to the client what he is going to save is one of the best ways to be successful in attracting them.
To calculate this saving, simply subtract the energy consumed minus the energy generated. But… Where can we get this data?
The energy consumed can be obtained from the sum of the CUPS codes (Universal Code of Supply Point) of the buildings. That is, the identifier of the point of supply thereof.
We can also obtain information on consumption through open data repositories, especially in the case of public buildings.
To all this we can add the fact that there are standard formulas on the market that are used to estimate consumption in common areas based on the number of homes.
To know the energy that the solar panels will generate, we can estimate it from the available surface, the type of panel to be installed, its performance and the total number of panels that can be installed based on radiation. A radiation that can be obtained from images by LiDAR technology.
In these cases, from Imageryst we can automatically process the satellite images to extract the footprint of the buildings, calculate the available surface, its inclination and orientation, as well as the radiation it receives.
2. Bet on areas where there are already solar panels
An effective strategy is to identify the areas where there is already a significant penetration of the solar panel market, but without being a saturated area.
This is very simple if images taken by satellite are used. With them you can visualize these neighborhoods, so they are a very valuable resource for designing marketing and sales strategies with a higher success rate and return on investment, minimizing risks.
The Imageryst solution makes it possible to automatically process these images, geolocating those roofs that already have solar panels installed.
3. Apply more efforts in areas where conditions are more favorable and discard the rest
On many occasions, even if someone wants to place a solar panel on their roof, it is not possible due to different situations. Here, it is very important for companies to locate these cases, saving the cost of deploying sales actions in those locations.
What aspects must be evaluated for this? Between them we have:
The height of the buildings: the installation of solar panels in some buildings requires the use of cranes, which is not possible for technical reasons or economic profitability.
Presence of obstacles in buildings, such as chimneys, vaults, windows, antennas, etc.
That the building is built on land with very difficult access for installation.
That there are many zones and areas of shadow and/or that the radiation levels are not optimal.
Undoubtedly, images taken by satellite are a reality for solar energy companies that are taking the top positions in the market.
In them, solutions like the ones we offer at Imageryst are highly appreciated, since they allow automating the capture of the best available images among all the existing ones. In addition, it is designed for all user profiles, regardless of their technical knowledge.
Would you like to know first-hand all its benefits? Ask us for a demo and try it now.
