Bottom-up analysis of the solar photovoltaic potential for a city in the Netherlands: A working model for calculating the potential using high resolution LiDAR data

Abstract

This paper presents a working model to estimate the solar photovoltaic potential using high-resolution LiDAR data and Geographic Information Systems. This bottom-up approach method has been selected to arrive at the potential as this gives a better estimate than a top-down approach. The novelty of the study lies in estimating the potential at high resolution and classifying the rooftop as suitable or not for solar photovoltaic installations based on factors like irradiation, slope and orientation. The city of Apeldoorn in the Netherlands has been selected as the study area. The model was able to successfully locate suitable sites for photovoltaic installations at rooftop level. In addition, the area feasible for the installations and the potential power output has also been calculated. We conclude that the city has a potential of 319 MWp capacity, which would yield 283.9 GWh/yr in relation to the 304 GWh/yr consumption from residential buildings in the area.