A holistic method for determining floating photovoltaic schemes

Abstract

This paper determines which floating photovoltaic (FPV) commerce investment is more favorable for Taiwan’s Agongdian Reservoir or Japan’s Yamakura Dam integrating time-series forecasting, analytical network process (ANP), and financial analyses. Although much literature is associated with the FPV environmental impact, energy generation, and photovoltaic (PV) units on water, there needs to be more discourse on comparative economic analysis in optimal schemes to help investors make decisions. The finances of various countries cannot support long-term renewable energy development, especially after the happenings of the epidemic, the Russian–Ukrainian war, extreme environment, inflation, and interest rate hike in the USA. The results reveal that the metrics impacting FPV deployment scales are system capacity, installation cost, bank rate, and emissions trading systems (ETSs) and electricity bills with weights of 0.23, 0.23, 0.12, and 0.42, respectively. In the post-feed-in tariff (FIT) era, investing in Japan is more favorable than in Taiwan as the former’s net present value (NPV) is promising (7269.8, at a discount rate of 5%). The internal rate of return (IRR), 10.1%, the benefit-cost ratio (BCR), 1.71 at a discount of 5%, and the breakpoint point, 55.2%, are affirmative. The approach proposed in the study benefits stakeholders’ decision-making while funding a project. Floating photovoltaic (FPV) deployment Floating photovoltaic (FPV) deployment