Evaluate add-ons and data source updates

Prerequisites

• An active Solargis Evaluate account.

• A project in full Evaluate stage.

Evaluate Add-ons

The Solargis application enhances solar resource assessment capabilities through specialized add-ons, available exclusively for Full evaluation projects. These add-ons come in the form of additional datasets and expert services for comprehensive project analysis.

You can access and manage the add-ons and services in the main menu under Project/Data & services in the Solargis data tab. The Data & services section offers access to the following datasets to upgrade your project data source:

• Uncertainty data

• TMY Pxx data

• High temporal resolution data (1-minute)

• Site adaptation of the Solargis Model

Important: Some of the datasets may take time to activate as they are manually processed by our team of experts.

Uncertainty data

Solar irradiance uncertainty estimates enable robust validation of resource assessment and performance forecasting. This includes:

• Detailed irradiance variability metrics

• Enhanced accuracy in energy yield predictions

• Improved risk assessment for project financing

Once the add-on has been activated, the data will be available in the Uncertainty category under the Analysis section. Clicking the charts icon will redirect you to the page.

Important: If you have multiple data sources in your projects and want to see uncertainty for each of them, you will need to request uncertainty separately for each of them. The activation is not automatic and always applies to the relevant data source only.  

Note: This data is included in Full evaluation at no additional cost.

TMY Pxx data

The TMY datasets with different probability of exceedance levels provide varying confidence intervals for energy yield predictions:

• TMY P99: Extremely conservative estimate suitable for worst-case scenario planning.

• TMY P95: Very conservative estimate for risk-averse financial modeling.

• TMY P90: Conservative estimate commonly used for bank financing, expected to be exceeded 90% of the time.

• TMY P75: Moderately conservative estimate for balanced risk assessment.

• TMY P10: Optimistic scenario useful for analyzing maximum potential performance.

Clicking the download icon of the respective Pxx data (activated only) will redirect you to the downloads section, where you can initiate the data download.

Note: This data is included in Full evaluation at no additional cost.

High temporal resolution data

1-minute resolution dataset provides critical insights for advanced system design and operation:

• More accurate prediction of power output fluctuations

• Better assessment of inverter clipping losses

• Improved grid integration planning

• Enhanced analysis of cloud edge effects

• More precise sizing of energy storage systems

This high-resolution dataset is particularly valuable for utility-scale projects where accurate performance modeling and grid compliance are essential. It is generated automatically in the background and may take approximately 15 minutes depending on the location.

Note: This data is available for Full evaluation projects only and is not included in the project activation price. You can purchase it at an additional cost.

Site adaptation of Solargis Model

This lets you request data source adapted to site-specific conditions for better accuracy. Using your on-site ground measurements (minimum 12 months), we recalibrate our solar and meteorological models to your specific project location — reducing data bias and uncertainty for more reliable energy assessments.

What's included:

• Full quality control and metadata harmonization of your measurements

• Site-adapted time series and TMY P50 data integrated directly into your Evaluate project

• Ability to run energy simulations, generate reports, export outputs, and derive additional TMY Pxx percentiles — all based on higher-confidence, location-tuned data

Note: This service is quoted individually based on project complexity, measurement quality, and completeness of provided documentation. Contact your account manager for a personalized quote and a list of required inputs.

1. Click the “Request now” button.

2. Read the on-screen disclaimer and submit the request.

Activating add-on data

You can activate all available datasets on the Data & services page:

1. Click the “Activate” link next to the add-on you want to activate.

2. Active add-ons are marked as “Active”.

Important: Please be aware that additional add-on data delivery might take up to 24hrs to show on your account.

If you are activating paid datdaset, e.g., high temporal resolution data (1-minute data), the cost will be displayed in the confirmation prompt. Confirm that you wish to spend SGU for the add-on activation. Data will be delivered to your project automatically after processing.

Note: We will send a confirmation notification to your email once you request activation of any dataset.

Add-on services

Evaluate application add-on services enhance project assessment capabilities by introducing specialized services and expanded datasets. They were created to provide deeper insights through higher resolution data processing, supplementary albedo measurements, or customized consulting services. The following add-ons are available:

• Site Adaptation of Solargis Model Data

• Quality Control of Ground Measurements

• Harmonization of Ground Measurements

• Ground Surface Albedo Time Series

• Site Adaptation of Ground Surface Albedo Time Series

• Spatial and Temporal Evaluation of Ground Surface Albedo

• Evaluation of PV energy yield

• Historical Forecast

• Consultancy Support for Complex Photovoltaic Projects

• Site Assessment of Soiling losses

You can request add-on services using the three-dot menu while on the Full evaluation project page:

1. Open the projects menu.

2. Select “Request service” to access add-on services and choose the service you want to request in the next prompt.

Available add-on services

The following services are available for request under the Solargis services tab on the Data & Services page.

Site Adaptation of Solargis Model Data

Solargis uses your ground measurements of solar resource to adapt our satellite-based solar resource model, delivering a dataset with reduced uncertainty and improved accuracy for site-specific conditions. The bankable solar resource assessment report covers quality control of the measurements, model adaptation, and site solar resource statistics.

Quality Control of Ground Measurements

Solargis checks the quality of your ground measurements of solar resource and meteorological parameters. Using a rigorous multi-level quality control approach, we flag issues in the data, and deliver an error-free dataset suitable for analysis and decision-making.

Harmonization of Ground Measurements

Solargis checks the quality of your ground measurements of solar resource and meteorological parameters, then merges data from multiple sensors into a single, gap-free, validated, and bankable dataset — especially useful for PV power plant performance evaluation.

Ground Surface Albedo Time Series

Daily-resolution time series of ground surface albedo, derived from MODIS and VIIRS satellite data and Solargis solar radiation models. The report analyzes albedo variability and provides more accurate long-term average albedo values — especially important for bifacial PV simulation.

Site Adaptation of Ground Surface Albedo Time Series

Using your ground albedo measurements, Solargis adapts the satellite- and model-derived albedo time series to improve accuracy and site representativeness. The report analyzes geographic and temporal albedo variability and provides long-term average values, critical for bifacial PV yield simulation.

Spatial and Temporal Evaluation of Ground Surface Albedo

Solargis experts analyze albedo variability across your project area over the available data period. The report identifies distinct zones with different albedo patterns, describes trends, and provides long-term average albedo values per zone — especially critical for large sites and bifacial PV yield simulation.

Evaluation of PV energy yield

Some projects need special tools and extra expertise, not standard methods. Solargis Consultancy can help with hybrid PV+BESS projects, very large projects, complex site layouts, and detailed variability analysis using data as precise as 1-minute intervals.

This service is for projects where standard tools are not enough. We make sure you get reliable results, even for the most difficult cases.

Historical Forecast

Solargis Forecast data covering the past two calendar years, with customizable forecast horizons and issue times, plus a forecast accuracy report. Essential for modeling, sizing, and optimizing PV and BESS systems, as well as commercial planning for energy trading and grid penalty minimization.

Consultancy Support for Complex Photovoltaic Projects

Solargis Consultancy brings specialist tools and expertise to complex projects with custom requirements — e.g., hybrid PV+BESS projects, extremely large projects, complex topologies and layouts, or custom variability evaluation using input data at up to 1-minute resolution.

Site Assessment of Soiling Losses

Solargis assesses long-term soiling losses at your site using our soiling loss model. If you provide on-site soiling measurements, we quality-control them and use verified data to adapt the model to local conditions. Delivers a daily soiling loss time series and monthly long-term averages with comprehensive statistics, ready for direct use in PV yield simulation

Data source updates

Solargis data and models are updated regularly. Your project receives the most recent data source at activation — but if you work on a project over several months, a newer data source may become available. Evaluate lets you add it to your project alongside the existing one.

Key principles to remember:

• You get a new source, not a patch. An update delivers a completely new data source, not just the data missing from the previous one.

• Add-ons do not carry over. Datasets activated on the previous data source (uncertainty, TMY Pxx, 1-minute) must be activated again on the new one.

• Data sources coexist. The previous data source stays in the project. You choose which one is primary and can archive the rest.

• Updates cost SGU. The price is always displayed before you confirm the purchase.

Updating to a newer data source

When a newer data source becomes available, it appears in Project → Data & services in the Solargis data tab as an optional data update.

1. Open the data update tab. It shows the update cost, the new data source parameters, and a link to the release notes.

2. Click the “Update” button to purchase the data update.

3. Wait for processing. The new data source is listed on the Data & services page once available.

Note: Processing time depends on the size of the data source.

Important: Uncertainty estimates must be requested separately for each data source. They are never carried over from a previous data source and never appear automatically.

With the new data source, you can:

• simulate your energy systems and evaluate their data,

• generate reports and data exports,

• estimate soiling and snow losses in the energy system designer (PV energy systems only).

If you have your own on-site ground measurements, you can also request site adaptation to improve the accuracy of the Solargis dataset for your location, and then use the site-adapted data source in your simulations.

Selecting your primary data source

Once the project contains more than one data source, you can decide which one is the primary data source. The primary data source is pre-selected in your simulations and in the energy system selector when you open the project Overview or Analysis sections.

1. Open the three-dot menu of the data source.

2. Select “Set as primary”. The data source is then marked with the label for quick reference.

A typical use case is promoting your requested site-adapted data to primary once it has been delivered.

Important: With PV energy systems, you must simulate the system again for the project data to reflect the new data source.

Archiving data sources

Archiving hides a data source from applications and simulation options while keeping it stored in the project for potential future use.

1. Open the three-dot menu of the data source.

2. Select “Archive”. The data source moves to the archived data sources section on the Data & services page.

3. To use the data source again, select “Unarchive”.

Important: The primary data source cannot be archived. Set another data source as primary first.