Feasibility analysis of photovoltaic systems in the main EU countries

This paper presents a study of the economic feasibility of photovoltaic solar energy systems connected to the European Union electrical grid considering small, medium, and large industrial installations. The main variables (irradiation level, opportunity cost of capital, energy cost inflation, installation size and incentives) are analyzed in order to highlight their influence on profitability of the investment for the five most representative EU countries (France, Germany, Greece, Italy and Spain) in terms of solar energy availability. Technical information and costs of PV cells have been input into a database and a mathematical cost model developed quantifying the economic performance of PV systems. A wide range of scenarios, varying all of the technical parameters, were investigated and the economic results found. Moreover, a sensitivity analysis focused on both the annual irradiation threshold that make the installation of PV systems profitable, and on the expected PV module self- sufficiency cost.