Energy performance of concentrator and flat plate photovoltaics in the mediterranean area

A comparative analysis of the energy production of a High Concentrator Photovoltaic (CPV) and a flat plate amorphous photovoltaic (PV) plants, installed in the same place in the southern Italy, is presented. This analysis aims at providing reliable production values of CPV based on a long term monitoring with reference to this specific geographic zone. The daily normalized power production in different weather conditions is presented and the correlation between energy production and daily solar irradiance is discussed. Further, a statistical analysis on the normalized energy production is developed for both plants, referring to the measured historical data. Finally, economic aspects and the evaluation of levelized cost of energy for CPV based on in-field data are reported. On the basis of these considerations, the feasibility of CPV systems in southern Europe are discussed.