Projects

Application: Residential
Location: Isla Grande, Cartagena, Colombia
Product: Morningstar TriStar 45A
System size: 1.1 kW (two sites)
Partners: Sunbridge Solar, Trina Solar

Sunbridge Solar worked with Morningstar to power two elementary schools on the island of Isla Grande in Cartagena, Colombia. Each project included a 1.1-kW solar array with 275-W, 60-cell monocrystalline modules from Trina Solar. Alianzas para la Abundancia (Alliances for Abundance), which helps strengthen local communities and ecosystems, also helped lead the project. The installation’s electricity improves the education of local students.

Summary

• An advanced security monitoring network using infra-red technology can successfully combat wildlife-threatening poaching in Kafue National Park in Zambia, Africa
• The remote security surveillance stations in the network use PV/solar electricity for a reliable, consistent power source
• Project managers selected Morningstar components for on-site solar electricity production, based on their proven ability in long-term operation under extreme conditions

Location: Global
Products: SunSaver SS-20, ProStar MPPT
Partners include: SFC Energy

Generating electricity in remote locations where applications require power 24/7 is always a challenge, especially when conditions prevent solar panels from capturing available sunlight. That’s why innovative solution providers are turning to another electrical-generating technology also originally developed for extended space missions: the fuel cell. For example, SFC in Germany offers its EFOY line of fuel cells, integrating renewable energy and fuel cell technology to power remote systems for years without refueling. This hybrid system shifts from fuel cells to solar energy to keep systems operating regardless of weather or time of day. SFC choose to use Morningstar components in its systems because of their unmatched reliability, advanced technology, and competitive pricing. As these systems reach into increasingly challenging and inhospitable environments, Morningstar components will ensure continual uptime with minimum human intervention.

Application: Security and Instrumentation, Lighting, Industrial
Location:  Brazil, Chile, Peru, Angola, United States
Product: TriStar MPPT 60,  TriStar Meter 2, ProStar MPPT 40, SunSaver MPPT 15
System size: Mobile repeaters with deep cycle batteries from 110 Ah to 3,520 Ah (30+ sites)
Partners include: Trailers RD

Mining companies increasingly rely on solar energy to generate electricity at remote sites, which require reliable surveillance, communication, and lighting for secure, continuous operation 24/7.

Trailers RD-Minas specializes in renewable mining applications. It chose Morningstar products for more than 30 mining, construction, road, and airport sites throughout North America, South America, and Africa. These projects included mobile radio repeaters, surveillance cameras, and light towers.

Minas’ engineering and Morningstar’s technology rapidly improves one of the world’s oldest industries to ensure that Brazil and other developing countries maintain their economic momentum.

Application: Lighting, Security
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Year: 2015
Product: TriStar MPPT 45
System size: Solar-powered streetlight kit with three modules, four 240-Ah, 12-V batteries and a 150-W LED lamp (4,300 units)
Partners: Soter, Kyocera Solar

The Arco Metropolitano is a 145-km arch of highway in the state of Rio de Janeiro. The arch skirts the booming metropolis of Rio de Janeiro city, providing a vital connection to the five major highways that crisscross the state. But hazardous weather conditions and high crime made driving on the highway at night difficult and dangerous. To keep the highway open, the government needed a reliable lighting solution to provide around-the-clock illumination on the most trafficked and dangerous stretches.

Japanese electronics firm Kyocera Solar partnered with Brazilian engineering company Soter to develop and install a street lighting system capable of producing 2.8 GWh of solar energy per year without burdening the already fragile local energy grid. The Kyocera streetlight kit depends on a lead battery system connected to a charge controller, capable of storing up to three days worth of energy. The Morningstar TriStar MPPT 45 serves as a critical component for this single-source energy solution.

Read more about the project here.

Application:  Oil & Gas
Location: Kuwait
Year: 2018
Product: TriStar MPPT 60 Controllers, TriStar 45 (load control) and EIA-485 / RS-232 communication adaptor
System size: 1 kW with 24-V, 960-Ah NiCd battery bank (five sites)
Partners: EcoSol Energy Systems

Kuwait is a dry and arid country with extreme temperature shifts from desert summers to frigid winters. Kuwait’s economy is heavily dependent on fossil fuels; oil accounts for more than half of its GDP and 95% of the government’s income. Because oil is so vital, the government-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corporation oversees the production of crude oil through a network of subsidiaries. Kuwait Oil Company relies on a reliable, steady source of electricity to power the exploration, drilling and production of oil and gas.

With most oil and gas sites in remote areas with restricted access, Kuwait Oil requires backup battery solutions with high performance, total reliability and low maintenance to power essential equipment and systems. EcoSol Energy Systems developed a lighting system to keep the oil fields running safely and efficiently. It turned to Morningstar to keep systems running without interruption with a nickel-cadmium (NiCd) battery system with TriStar MPPT 60 controllers. This power system is fully reliable in extreme temperatures, can withstand rugged wear-and-tear, and supplies off-site communications to keep systems running.

Application: Residential
Location: Alaska
Product: SunSaver 20L
System size: 12-V battery and small solar installation

It’s not uncommon for homeowners in some parts of Alaska to live in remote areas off of the grid. The Morningstar SunSaver is a small controller that works well with a solar installation to power essentials like LED lights or Bluetooth radio. With many positive online reviews, consumers enjoy staying connected with reliable and easy-to-use Morningstar products.

Application: Security and Instrumentation  
Location: Western Province, Kafue National Park in Zambia, East Africa
Product: TriStar MPPT 45 and Ethernet MeterBus Converter 1
System size: 2,560W per site (four sites), with battery backup
Partners: World Wildlife Fund, Techlink Ltd, Rolls Battery, Suntech Power

Kafue National Park is the oldest and largest of Zambia’s national parks. Interest in the park’s Safari Camp and lodging is leading to more visitors and increased sustainable power needs. Morningstar worked with installer Techlink and the World Wildlife Fund to create four solar sites, each complete with two Rolls Battery maintenance-free AGM-VRLA S12-220AE batteries and two Suntech STP320-24/Vem solar panels. The sites also include Morningstar’s TriStar MPPT 45 and Ethernet MeterBus Converter 1.

The national park has virgin bush and rocky islands. The equipment is rugged enough to withstand the park’s temperature variations (9°C to 40°C, or ~48°F to 104°F), humidity fluctuations between 20% and 95% and insects/wildlife.