The road network in the Netherlands is about 140,000 km long, and has an area of about 900 km2. If we add to this the other paved areas (parking lots, company premises, etc.) we arrive at a total paved area in the Netherlands of about 1200 km2. This is a surface area that is larger than the IJsselmeer, and more than all roof surfaces combined. It is estimated that between 200 and 300 km2 of paved surface is suitable for application of solar road surfaces. This could generate enough power for 9 million electric cars, which is the size of the current fleet. In more technical terms, this surface can generate 20 – 30 TWh of solar power, or 20-25% of the total current electricity consumption.

 

SolaRoad is also being used abroad, and there is a lot of interest. Almost all countries have ambitious climate targets, roads are needed everywhere, and space is scarce in many densely populated areas. This makes SolaRoad a promising export product. Stand-alone energy solutions powered by a robust and virtually invisible source of solar electricity such as SolaRoad are an attractive alternative to installing expensive and vulnerable grid connections in many places.