Environmental Impact Assessment of aPhotovoltaic Power Station in Stockholm

Sammanfattning: The paper at hand presents the environmental impact analysis of a photovoltaic (PV) power station sited in Stockholm, Sweden, using life cycle assessment (LCA). The LCA considers the primary energy return on investment and global warming potential of the PV-station, including; resource extraction, manufacturing, transportation, operation and maintenance, and decommissioning. Other environmental impact indicators are also presented, such as; the eutrophication, acidification, human toxicity, and ozone depletion potentials. The results show that the most critical phase of the lifecycle is the upgrade from metallurgical to solar grade silicon due to the high consumption of energy. The emissions results are compared to the emissions factors used for calculations in Sweden in accordance with the Swedish Energy agency and the European Commission’s directive for emissions calculations. The results for the other environmental indicators showed inconsistencies compared to existing studies, something that is according to the IEA’s guideline for PV-systems LCA caused by data scarcity and the indicators lacking consensus within the PV LCA-community. The studied PV-station is expected to reach energy neutrality after 2,4 years and offset annual GHG emissions of up to18 ton of CO 2 equivalents.