Feasibility of a vertical photovoltaic system on a high-rise building in Malaysia: economic evaluation

In order to fully assess the potential of a photovoltaic (PV) application on a building's facade, the amount of energy generated and the cost of the PV installation must be analysed during the design process to enable the designer, investor and end-user to make decisions regarding the implementation of renewable technologies. This paper focuses on the financial evaluation of a vertical PV facade system on a high-rise building in Malaysia, using the System Advisor Model developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory of Malaysia, based on five possible design scenarios that all use an amorphous silicon heterojunction module with a nominal efficiency of 15.6%. According to our financial analysis, the payback period for a vertical PV system would be about 12 years, while that of a horizontal system would be 6 years. On average, a PV system on a vertical facade would be able to save 8400–17 000 USD each month compared to a PV roof installation (about 5200 USD each month). This shows that PV installations on vertical facades of high-rise buildings could be implemented in Malaysian climate conditions. With a careful design approach, this could open up a new demographic in the Malaysian built environment and Renewable Energy industries.