Vladan Komatović, general manager of Green Energy 360 - Turnkey solar power plant in a month

Green Energy 360 is a company that deals with conceptual solutions, design, construction and maintenance of solar power plants. So far, it has built solar power plants for numerous renowned companies.

The general manager of Green Energy 360, Vladan Komatović, revealed in an interview for the eKapija portal that solar power plants are the most profitable for companies that use that energy for their own consumption while returning a minimal amount to the grid. It takes an average of 30 to 60 days from the idea to the realization of the project, and our interlocutor also reveals what adequate maintenance of solar power plants looks like and what criteria they use to select solar panel manufacturers.

How many solar power plants have you built in Serbia and the region so far?

- Green Energy 360 is a company that deals with conceptual solutions, design, construction and maintenance of solar power plants (FNE). Our target group is companies that have a large consumption of electricity, and households are not our target group at this time. The change in legislation contributed to the accelerated transition to renewable energy sources, and last year our company built over 50 MW of solar power plants, which is more than 250,000 m2 of surface area.

You build solar power plants on a turnkey basis. How long does it take to pass from the client`s idea for a solar power plant to the moment the power plant becomes operational? What has turned out to be the biggest challenge in that process?

- In most cases, solar power plants are built as an upgrade to the existing energy infrastructure. However, we have cases where factories are built in stages and there are problems related to project documentation, and it is not uncommon for the existing system to be overloaded. Assessing the existing condition, designing and fitting a new solar system is the key to safe and secure work. A special accent that we as a company give is the part of the design that is related to the energy sector. In most cases, company owners only see panels, they decide on the cheapest solutions without thinking about the project, the existing state of the system, lightning protections and are not aware that on a sunny day the voltage in the cables is over 700V.

On average, it takes 30 to 60 days from the idea to the implementation of the project. We try to always have a larger amount of equipment in stock, both for new projects and for the maintenance of already built solar power plants.

You`ve built solar power plants for numerous companies. For whom are solar power plants the most cost-effective, in terms of size of company and power plant, facility location?

- Solar power plants are the most profitable for companies that use the energy for their own consumption while returning a minimum amount to the grid. In principle, the smaller the returns to the grid, the faster the investment return period. Based on the geographical location of Serbia, the location of the installed solar power plant does not have such an impact on its production.

Solar panels produced in China are significantly cheaper than European ones, but not of lower quality, according to many experts. What is your experience? What criteria do you use to choose solar panel manufacturers?

- I would agree with this assertion. China conquered the world with its mass production of photovoltaic cells. When we talk about commercial affairs, there are almost no European panel producers. They are mainly factories that buy photovoltaic cells from China and assemble them in Europe. There are also photovoltaic panels that are really completely manufactured in Europe, but their price is drastically higher on the market. Basically, there are panel manufacturers in Europe whose panels have very good features, but their pricing policy is not profitable for commercial projects.

How important is system maintenance and what does it look like?

- Every system must be maintained, so solar power plant systems also require maintenance. Depending on the environment in which the solar power plant is located, its dirtiness varies. Dust, bird excrement, vapors that settle on solar panels drastically reduce production. In addition, a failure on one panel can lead to a reduced operation of all panels that are in regular connection with it. Due to the cleaning of the panels with brushes that are not intended for that, in combination with ordinary water that leaves scale, the invisible layer that covers the panel is damaged and thus reduces their efficiency.

Green Energy 360 has a separate team that deals only with the maintenance of power plants and uses the most modern equipment: autonomous robots for cleaning panels, water osmosis system, thermal imaging cameras, drones, etc.

Apart from the construction of solar power plants, you also deal with electricity trading. How much do your clients use this service? Do they opt for prosumer status rather?

- Mostly clients opt for full supply by EPS, because the price is still competitive in terms of the surrounding market. The increased number of solar and wind power plants in the coming period, as well as the change in legal regulations will contribute to the supply of consumers from these sources in the near future.