Poralu Marine has announced that the company is expanding its areas of expertise with the installation of a floating solar platform at Canoe Brook in the state of New Jersey, about 25 km from New York.

The market for energy produced from photovoltaic panels is developing increasingly on water, with the use of floating installations. This is in response to strong constraints in terms of the competitiveness and lack of availability of large sites of land suitable for development.

The installation of a floating solar park in Canoe Brook, initiated by New Jersey American Water, is a perfect illustration of the issues surrounding this new market. Entrusted to ENERACTIVE Solutions, an engineering firm specialising in energy solutions, this pilot project involved the creation and implementation of a viable 112 kWh photovoltaic system floating on the Canoe Brook reservoir.

Making use of solar energy, this installation should generate 136,000 kWh of energy per year. The electricity produced will enable the water treatment plant to supply 78,000 homes in the counties of Essex, Union, Morris and Somerset, treating around 152 million litres of water per day. This was the context within which ENERACTIVE Solutions entrusted Poralu Marine with the engineering of the floating section, the interface with the photovoltaic panels, and the anchorage to the SEAFLEX system. The customized design and complete solution provided by Poralu Marine responded to a very precise set of specifications and observed the technical and financial constraints present to produce green electricity at a competitive price:

Provision of solar panel installation with high platform stability;

Longevity of the entire structure and minimum maintenance in a demanding environment (ice formation during winter periods);

Cost adjustment of the floating structure and its anchoring system to bring it within the predefined feasibility budget;

Minimization of maintenance services for a greater return on investment.

The solar platform, composed of a floating pontoon structure onto which photovoltaic panels have been attached, is installed on a SEAFLEX anchoring system. This innovative Swedish technology enables a flexible form of anchoring that is unequalled in its ability to stabilise floating structures subject to very large variations in water level. It also offers the advantage of a long lifespan, while requiring minimum maintenance and meeting all environmental protection standards.

For more information about Poralu Marine: www.poralu.com