Let's Talk: Solar Energy & Living off-grid - (Part 1)

For the past 10 years, I have been generating my own electric energy using solar panels in various projects and situations. This experience has been incredibly rewarding, and this year I made the decision to disconnect from the grid and live off-grid.

When I checked my solar energy meter recently, I realized that I had produced 82.6 MW of electricity in the past decade. Doing some calculations, this corresponds to an average of 688 kW per month, which is approximately four times more than the average household consumption in Portugal, or twice the consumption of an average European or one American household.

Not only have I been able to avoid CO2 emissions over the past 10 years, but I have also offset the emissions produced by a couple of other families.

Solar photovoltaic technology is a groundbreaking solution for a sustainable energy future. Its widespread adoption not only helps combat climate change but also stimulates economic growth, enhances energy independence, and empowers communities. As individuals, businesses, and governments come together to embrace solar PV, we can revolutionize our energy systems and create a cleaner, greener, and more resilient world.

Solar photovoltaic is such an interesting and broad topic that I will be writing a series of articles about it:

Part 1 - The general topic, the dream, and the happy life.

Part 2 - Available options, examples, and practical applications.

Part 3 - The hidden costs, environmental impacts, and the duck curve problem.

Part 4 - The future.

But for now, let's focus on the facts rather than dreaming too much.

When looking at the electricity production mix in Portugal, as shown on reliable sources like https://www.pordata.pt, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat, or https://datahub.ren.pt/pt/, we can see that our combination of renewable and non-renewable sources is already favorable towards renewables, which is very encouraging. However, solar photovoltaic power still represents a small part of the overall mix.

At the same time, the cost of installing and building solar energy farms is decreasing every day. Solar energy is then the way to go. The installation time for a solar farm is also much shorter compared to that of a wind farm or a gas/nuclear power plant.

Without going into too many calculations, if we were to install solar panels on all residential and industrial roofs, as well as car parking sheds in Portugal, we would have much more energy than we actually need.

Certainly, solar energy is not the solution to all problems. It doesn't generate power at night, so we need to address the issue of energy storage through batteries, heat storage, water pumping, or other means. But that's a topic for another post, duck curves are very interesting to look at.

The real question is: What can we do about it as individuals? How can we become less dependent on utilities and politics?

The answer is that we, as independent citizens, can break free from the grid. We can generate our own energy to power our homes and charge our electric vehicles. The technology is available to anyone at relatively affordable prices. Of course, it requires an initial investment, with a return on investment (ROI) typically ranging from 6 to 10 years.

By choosing to use solar energy, we can positively impact several aspects:

• Reduce global warming.
• Lighten the load on the grid.
• Cut down on costs.
• Make better use of our planet's resources.
• Live a happier life.

We may not be able to change the world in a day, but that's not a problem. Let's start by changing our own lives and enjoying the benefits. Others will follow, as the saying goes: "If you build it, they will come."

And as others have said: "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."