Robotic assembly line goes to work on part of a Texas solar farm

Matrix Renewables is using Terabase's Terafab V2 on part of its 457 MW Tormes project, though no measured savings have been reported.

Matrix Renewables, a Spain-based power producer, is using Terabase Energy's Terafab V2 automated construction platform on part of its 457 MW Tormes Solar project in Navarro County, Texas. Solv Energy, based in California, is the EPC contractor. Terabase is a US company.

The system works as an on-site assembly line. Robots mount PV modules onto tracker torque tubes, and the assemblies pass through an integrated quality inspection system. Robots then load them onto autonomous rover vehicles, which carry them out into the solar field. Workers unload them and install them onto tracker supports that are already in place. Terabase says the factory can be moved and set up in about four hours, and that each line makes an assembly roughly every two minutes, or about 20 MW per week under continuous operation. Software tied to a digital twin of the site handles planning, inventory and logistics, and several lines can run at one project.

Solar hardware keeps getting cheaper, but installation labor on the ground is a large share of what is left. If assembly moves into a repeatable, factory-style process, building a solar farm could take fewer people and less time. That would lower the cost of electricity and help move construction closer to manufacturing. Terabase claims it can double labor productivity compared with conventional utility-scale installation.

Treat that as a claim for now. The output and productivity figures are company numbers, not measured results from Tormes, and real output will depend on project configuration, equipment utilization and site conditions. Only part of Tormes uses the platform, and no labor or cost savings have been reported. V2 is currently tuned for First Solar Series 7 modules and Nextpower trackers, and final installation onto supports still needs workers. Terabase says it is developing robotics for that step in a future version. Watch for measured results from Tormes and support for other modules and trackers.

Source: pv magazine