Brasilia Solar Monitoring Power Supply System

Trackers dominate Brazil's utility-scale solar sector, with 94.85% of installations opting for this technology. In contrast, fixed structures are used in only 4.32% of projects, and East-West configurations make up a minor 0.83%.

Today, the north-east leads the country's solar market. According to the Brazilian National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel), the region has accumulated more than 60% of the total power solar capacity that is authorised to operate in the national system (excluding distributed generation).

Solar is now Brazil's second-largest source of electricity. Experts say its growth must also reach and respect communities cut off from the grid Student Brenda Rodrigues da Silva works on the installation of solar panels at Fábrica Social, a professional training centre in Brasília, Brazil.

Allied to this, in 2012 the country gave its authorisation for “distributed” generation – the production of energy on a smaller scale, close to the point of consumption. This format now accounts for almost 70% of solar energy in Brazil, and is the main driver of solar's growth in the country.

Many communities in north-eastern Brazil live close to solar power plants but lack connections to the grid, meaning they cannot access the electricity generated by such facilities (Image: Alan Santos, Palácio do Planalto, CC BY)

Brazil shows a slight preference for central inverters, which are used in 54.03% of projects, compared to 45.97% for string inverters. They're especially favored for large-scale PV farms. But why lean towards central inverters? A solar inverter converts the DC power from solar panels into AC power, which is necessary for supplying the grid.