20.75 MWh Recovery with Identification of Power Limitation due to Configuration Error in Solar Plant

Context

During routine monitoring of one of our clients' solar plants, the Performance Engineering team identified that inverter INV1 was operating with significantly lower performance than the other inverters in the plant.

A detailed analysis of the active power curve revealed an anomalous behavior: before September 18, the inverter's power output stagnated at approximately 95 kW, without clipping events occurring, even during periods of high irradiance.

This pattern indicated an unintentional power limitation that silently reduced the asset's efficiency, without generating alarms in traditional systems.

Implemented Solution

The detection and diagnosis of the root cause were carried out using the data intelligence of the Delfos platform:

• String-Level Data Analysis: the platform indicated that multiple strings connected to INV1 were operating under a limited condition, which explained the observed underperformance.
• Power Curve Analysis: visualization of the active power curve allowed the identification of the absence of clipping at the nominal level, highlighting the artificial "ceiling" of 95 kW.
• Performance Heatmap Module: used to confirm that the deviation was persistent and exclusive to INV1 compared to the reference group.

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Based on this evidence, the O&M team performed a field inspection and identified configuration errors in the string connections, which were limiting the current and, consequently, the inverter's output power. The correction was made on September 18.

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Achieved Results

The correction of the settings resulted in an immediate improvement in the asset's performance:

• Frustrated Energy Identified: 20.75 MWh (referring to the period from March 6 to September 18).
• Efficiency Increase: the energy loss due to the limitation was estimated at 13.7% before the correction.
• Power Normalization: after the intervention, the inverter began to reach its nominal level, with clipping events occurring at approximately 105 kW.
• Post-Correction Validation: the performance heatmap confirmed a consistent and sustained improvement from September 19 onwards.

Conclusion

This case highlights the importance of advanced analytical monitoring to identify configuration failures that do not generate shutdown alarms. Delfos's ability to compare peer performance (equivalent inverters) and analyze string-level data allowed a silent loss of 13.7% to be converted into active generation, ensuring the asset operated at its nominal capacity and recovering revenue that would have been lost indefinitely.Key Data

• 20.75 MWh of total energy identified as lost;
• 13.7% estimated loss in the performance of inverter INV1;
• 10 kW immediate gain in peak power (from 95 kW to 105 kW);
• 100% effectiveness in resolving the problem via field configuration adjustment.

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