From pv magazine Germany

A consortium formed by Germany-based mounting system provider K2 Systems and Swiss EPC contractor Solarmotion has deployed a vertical PV system on a bypass road in the municipality of Teufen in the canton of Appenzell Ausserhoden, Switzerland.

The array is located on a 75-degree retaining wall and has a capacity of 325 kW. It uses 756 glass-glass full black solar modules from an undisclosed provider.

According to K2 Systems, the mounting solution used for the installation is based on its “K2 BasicRail” mounting rail combined with HUS screw anchors. Lichtestein-based Hilti provided the mechanical dowels for the project.

In the system configuration, the PV system's parts, as well as the K2 building protection mat as a substrate, were anchored on and in the masonry using an adhesive technique. The companies had to consider that an anchoring depth of a maximum of 90 mm could not be exceeded, in order not to affect the statics of the retaining wall.

An engineering office from the Swiss road inspectorate checked all static calculations during the planning phase.

The companies completed the project in two months. Due to its proximity to the asphalt, the K2 mounting system is still subject to exceptional corrosion requirements and its components are covered with anodized aluminum for protection. The components of the fastening system are made of aluminum and A2 stainless steel.

The photovoltaic system is scheduled to be officially inaugurated in December. It is expected that the vertical array will produce good yields, especially in winter. Overall, the annual solar power generation is expected to be around 230,000 kWh.

The system is injecting power to the grid of local energy provider St. Gallisch-Appenzellische Kraftwerke AG (SAK) under Switzerland's feed-in tariff regime.