Ireland's first vertical photovoltaic system

Over Easy Solar has installed Ireland's first vertical photovoltaic system in Dublin, 5.37 kW across 21 XM-3 QUATTRO-256S bifacial units, on a Sempergreen green roof, built by the Irish contractor Solar Precision.

The missing variable is who funds the upfront investment. Under the Non-Domestic Microgen Grant of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, open to businesses, schools and non-profit bodies in Ireland, systems of 5 kWp to 6 kWp receive 2,400 euros, and payment is only processed after the installation is complete and the documentation submitted, within four to six weeks.

Public support here is reimbursement, not equity. The owner pays the full cost of the green roof and the vertical system before receiving any instalment, and depends on prior grid connection approval from ESB Networks, a process that takes at least four weeks.

What decides adoption of vertical photovoltaics on commercial roofs is the source of capital covering the gap between the works and the reimbursement.