An Agri-PV (Agriculture photovoltaic module) is produced at the factory of the International Renewable Energy Expert joint-stock company in Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu. It's the first locally made Agri-PV for dual-use solar energy at agriculture projects. Photo courtesy of IREX

BÀ RỊA-VŨNG TÀU — The International Renewable Energy Expert, a local solar power cell producer, has introduced the first made-in-Việt Nam Agri-PV (Agriculture photovoltaic module) for dual-use solar energy agriculture projects in domestic and export markets.

IREX Energy joint-stock company said the Agri-PV, which was produced at its Vũng Tàu city-based plant, is designed with power capacity from 265 to 400 watts each for flexible installation at crop and aquatic farms as well as log farms.

Director of IREX, Nguyễn Sơn Trường Giang, said the locally-made Agri-PV is eligible for ‘green’ energy farm projects as solar panels were created with monocrystalline double glass bifacial for better light absorption.

He said a 300sq.m farm can install Agri-PV modules to generate 160kw per hour, while having a balanced temperature and moisture for crops below.

The solar power PV module has been used at a pilot sugar cane and a log farm in central Phú Yên Province from 2018.

The southern Vũng Tàu-based plant, which was launched with total capacity of 350MWp (photo-voltaic cells) solar cells and 500MWp solar panels per year, had to reduce capacity by 30 per cent due to the impact of COVID-19 and social distancing regulations.

It said 40 per cent of locally made solar cells were exported to European and North American markets from 2018.

The demand for dual-use solar power at agriculture projects in Việt Nam is high with 10.23 million hectares of farmland and 15.8 million hectares of forest farm area.

The local solar power manufacturer plans to provide solar cells and PV for one million green roof-top systems in central Việt Nam.

It said solar power and wind power products from IREX were used to create renewable energy on islands and technical platforms in Trường Sa (Spratly) Islands of Việt Nam. — VNS