Unlike technologies based on the consumption of fossil fuels, solar energy does not lead to the generation of harmful emissions in the operational phase, but the production (and disposal) of solar panels leads to a huge decrease in pollution. For buildings with a lot of energy demand like Universities, they are able to generate many positive effects both in the long and in the short term:
- Photovoltaic systems do not consume fuel;
- The modules have an average life of 25 - 40 years;
- The only cost is that of the installation given the low maintenance required;
- The cost of local electricity and the level of insolation determine the convenience of the photovoltaic system;
- The International Conference on Photovoltaic Solar Investments, calculates that electricity supply costs are distributed over 8 - 12 years thanks to solar panels.
Solar energy is definitively a very flexible energy technology, it can be built as distributed generation (located at or near the point of use) or as a central-station, utility-scale solar power plant (similar to traditional power plants). Both of these methods can also store the energy they produce for distribution after the sun sets, using cutting edge solar + storage technologies.