Assessment of the Applicability of Manual Tracker Units in Photovoltaic Micro-Power Plants under Conditions of the Russian Far North

The paper presents the results of research to determine the possibility of using manual tracker units in solar energy facilities. the purpose of the article is to study the applicability of manual tracker units in photovoltaic micro-power plants under the conditions of the North-East of Russia. This study solves problems of developing an algorithm for performing field studies, conducting field studies using manual tracker units, identifying the operating parameters of these units and conducting a technical and economic assessment of their use. Electricity supply to consumers in the North-East of Russia is carried out using autonomous power systems in the form of locally located diesel power plants. These facilities consume significant volumes of expensive diesel fuel, where the cost of electricity is at least 0.5$ per 1 kWh. Indicators of increasing electricity generation and reducing diesel fuel consumption were determined, subject to the use of manual trackers. In the case of using manual trackers in a photovoltaic micro-power plant, a specific average annual diesel fuel saving 0.44 ton/kW is achieved with a payback period of up to 12 years. A reduction in the specific volume of CO2 emissions is achieved at least 1.38 ton/kW per year. the main result is to demonstrate the practical use of manual tracking units in photovoltaic micro-power plants when compared with their automatic counterparts that don't operate in conditions of extremely low temperatures.