1,694 panels facing the sun
Paolo Casiraghi is the Chief Executive of the PC Project at Merate, the Engineering & Construction company specialising in the production of electrical systems from renewable sources, which oversaw the design and installation.
When was the project born?
The agreement with Pilot Italia was finalised in the summer of 2019, in July. The development and promotion of environmental issues are part of an extensive project supported by two important companies such as Banca Intesa San Paolo and Micro Credito Italiano.
Summing up with numbers. What did you mount on the 10,000 square metres of Pilot Italia’s roof?
There are exactly 1,694 panels facing the sun. Each of them measures 1 m by 1.66 m and weighs 20 kg, for a total of 33,340 kilograms.
What materials are they made of?
Each solar panel is entirely recyclable. They are made of aluminium, glass and silicon.
Silicon?
We are surrounded by silicon and we don’t know it. It is the second most abundant element on the planet, after oxygen. About 28% of the weight of the earth is represented by silicon.
Can you give me some examples?
It is a mineral that is found in solid form in rocks such as agate, quartz, opal, granite, as well as clay. Few people know that silica is beneficial to human health when it is consumed in small amounts: it helps the cardiovascular system, strengthens bones, protects the brain and improves the mood. Silicon is a fundamental element and not only for producing electrical energy.
What are the concrete advantages?
Since 7 October 2019, when the system became operational, an average of 500 thousand Kw/h of electricity has been produced. In one year, 20% of the total energy requirement comes from here. Consider that the Kyoto Protocol has set goals which Pilot Italia has already reached, the energy value that every company must produce at home. But as mentioned, the goal is to exceed this value.
So will this value increase in the future?
I cannot go into details, but the goal is to generate 50/60% of the requirements from solar energy.
Give me a concrete example. What does this 20% correspond to?
Translated into a measurable figure, it allows saving about 40 thousand litres of oil needed to produce electricity in one year. That is the equivalent of a tanker truck and 65 tonnes of Co2 not released into the atmosphere.
Yes, right. Oil to produce electricity…
We often forget this. But most of the energy that arrives in our homes or companies is produced by power plants powered by non-renewable fossil fuels, such as oil. But I can go further. Have you ever wondered how many processes are needed to transform a drop of oil into electricity? Think of the drilling rigs to extract the oil from the ground, which need energy to move. Energy is also needed to run the pumps that move the oil inside tanks, then a ship (that is powered by fossil fuel) or in the pipelines, until it reaches a power station that burns it and transforms it into energy. If you think about the environmental impact of all these processes related to the production of electricity, you realise how much the environment benefits from a “green” choice like that of Pilot Italia.
How much innovation is there in this project?
The innovation lies in the strategic choice. Few companies have the foresight to understand the advantages of this choice. I’ll give you a fact that explains the situation well. In 2019, we asked 120 companies to switch to solar energy. Only 5 installed a system. Pilot was one of them.
How long is the life of a solar panel?
The answer is forever or almost. In any case, you should know that each panel has a 25-year warranty against manufacturing defects. After 30 years, its cells are however able to produce at least 80% of what they produce today.
Imagine driving an electric car. With the energy produced by this system, how far could I go?
If we consider the consumption of a small battery-operated car, the energy produced by Pilot in one year would allow it to travel 3,125,000 kilometres, or 80 times around the earth. Does that seem enough?
