Israeli developer of module cleaning robots Ecoppia has been chosen by Finnish clean energy company Fortum to deploy its field-proven platform across different solar projects in India, totaling 427 MWp of production capacity.
Ecoppia will equip the Fortum developed projects in the Pavagada (Karnataka) and Bhadla (Rajasthan) solar parks with its connected and environment-friendly E4 robotic cleaner.
The robust E4 robot for fixed tilt solar installations supports both framed and frameless panels, adds no load to panel surface, and has been proven to be fully safe on both panels and anti reflective coating. Certified by US module maker First Solar, it will clean both crystalline modules and frameless modules in Fortum’s sites.
Regular module cleaning is necessary in dry and dusty environments, where the buildup of dust and sand can result in reduced PV output. Ecoppia’s robots are fully autonomous and don’t require water for cleaning the modules—ensuring sustainable operation of solar business.
UK Climate Investments (UKCI), a Macquarie subsidiary, and Elite Alfred Berg (EAB), who are stakeholders for 230 MWp of Fortum’s operating asset, share the same vision towards sustainable operation of solar business.
Speaking on the occasion, Fortum India managing director Sanjay Aggarwal said: “As we in Fortum drive the change towards a cleaner world, the Ecoppia water-free solutions are a perfect fit with our strategy.”
“Now, we will be able to provide clean energy without exhausting water resources—ensuring solar energy production is both cost-effective and truly environment friendly. This is a natural next step towards sustainable & clean development, a joint vision shared with our partners UKCI and EAB,” he added.
Ecoppia CEO Eran Meller said: “It’s a great honor to extend our successful collaboration with Fortum to additional projects. We see Fortum as a true and visionary partner in advancing the solar industry towards full automation and lower, viable levelized cost of energy.”
Ecoppia has deployed over 2 GW in production capacity in India alone, and secured over 7 GW projects globally. Its cloud-based, water-free, autonomous robotic systems remove dust from solar panels on daily basis leveraging advanced machine learning and Internet of Things capabilities. Remotely managed and controlled, the Ecoppia platform allows solar sites to maintain peak performance with minimal costs and human intervention.
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