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Benefits Cost Design Reliability Modular Environmental Less Oil Reliance
PV supply is very reliable and in the development of for critical projects such as NASA developments and for hospital and other infrastructure facilities that need guaranteed power supply. To put this question in perspective, think back to your home's last power outage. Depending on what you were doing at the time, it was either a minor inconvenience or it brought your activities — such as cooking a holiday meal, for example — to a standstill. Now consider the fact that amazon.com loses $1 million per minute when a power disruption makes its Internet site unavailable. It is easy to see that reliability is key, whether you are feeding your family or fueling the economy.
PV systems, originally developed for use in space — where repairs are extremely expensive, if not impossible — are highly reliable. PV still powers nearly every satellite that circles the Earth, because it operates reliably for long periods and needs virtually no maintenance. And to dispel a commonly held "PV myth," PV systems can generate power in all types of weather. On partly cloudy days, they turn out as much as 80% of their potential energy. Even on extremely overcast days, they can still produce about 25% of their maximum output.
PV systems are easy to maintain. They have no moving parts, so visual checks and battery servicing are enough to keep systems up and running. Because manufacturers test solar panels for hail impact, high wind, and freeze-thaw cycles representing year-round weather conditions, weather damage is no greater potential problem for PV systems than for other types of energy production systems.
 This petrol station in Perivale, United Kingdom, has grid-connected, roof-mounted photovoltaic modules that generate electricity to power the pumps and lights under the canopy. So even if grid power is interrupted, the petrol pumps remain fully- operational.
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