Comparative analysis of PV orientation strategies to tackle summer demand peaks and land limitations

In hot climates, electricity demand during summer, driven largely by cooling often exceeds supply, making photovoltaic (PV) systems a critical resource for meeting peak loads. Primarily focusing on meeting summer load, this study investigates the effect of variation of module tilt and azimuth angles across India, the UAE, and Singapore on PV yield. It identifies optimal orientations for different objectives: maximising annual yield, enhancing summer generation, aligning output with demand patterns, and improving summer production with minimal annual losses. These objectives reflect the diverse priorities of different users and installers. It further analyses seasonal and geographic variations in PV output in relation to demand trends. Using simulations with the PVlib Python library, we demonstrate that strategic adjustments in tilt and azimuth can substantially increase summer generation, reduce inter-row spacing by up to 80%, and improve demand matching, while limiting annual energy losses to below 4% compared to conventional deployment. To our knowledge, this is the first multi-country, multi-objective analysis which offers minimal cost, easy-to-implement strategies to reduce energy scarcity during hot summer months. This work also discusses different practical metrics, i.e. net load reduction and demand–generation correlation to support solar park owners and policy makers deciding about those strategies. By analysing multiple regions with distinct climatic and economic conditions, the study offers insights that can be applied to comparable regions.