2.1. Project, Guidelines, and Methodologies

The ^{Project Management Institute (PMI), (2021)} defines a project as a “temporary effort undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result” (p. 251). Projects consist of phases and stages designed to achieve specific objectives, interconnected to reach the overall project goal. Various methodologies and guidelines have been developed globally to systematize and standardize project phases, stages, and steps, simplifying planning and ensuring adherence to initial objectives. Three prominent methodologies used in project management are PMI, PRINCE2, and SCRUM (Table 1).

2.2 Solar Energy Systems, Types, and Components

Photovoltaic solar energy projects have seen significant growth due to society’s transition to cleaner energy sources. These projects primarily involve five key components (Table 2).

There are three types of projects based on generation capacity and energy supply:

Self-contained standalone systems, independent of the regional electrical grid.

Hybrid systems, generating energy primarily for self-supply but also feeding surplus energy into the grid.

Solar parks or solar farms, designed for large-scale energy generation and grid distribution.

The environmental variables under consi­de­ration remain consistent, regardless of the project’s type or size. However, technical and legal requirements differ based on the project’s capacity and purpose. Therefore, the initial step involves defining the project’s size and purpose, which subsequently guides the analysis of the environmental variables within the context. Following this, technical and legal aspects are addressed, with adjustments made according to the project’s purpose and size.

Within the realm of environmental variables, experts in the field have stressed the importance of an optimal correlation of three variables, irrespective of the project’s size. These findings are documented in the 2017 ‘Atlas of Solar Radiation, Ultraviolet, and Ozone in Colombia,’ published by IDEAM and UPME. These variables are as follows:

Solar Radiation Intensity (kWh/m²).

Average Hours of Sunlight per Day (hSd).

Average Number of Days per Month with Sunshine.

Regarding the legal aspects, conditions and requirements indeed vary depending on the project’s size and purpose. ^{Resolution CREG 030 of 2018} and Resolution ^{CREG 174 of 2021} regulate and offer a step-by-step guide for compliance with the requirements according to the intended purpose of the project. In Colombia, energy projects are categorized into three types based on their generation capacity (Table 3).

4.1. Evolution of Solar Energy in Colombia and Huila Department

From 2018 to 2022 in Colombia, Non-Conventional Renewable Energies (NCREs) have increased their share within the national energy matrix, rising from approximately 1% to 6% whit diferents proyects in the national territory. Wind energy and solar energyare the most popular Non-Conventional Renewable Energies (NCREs) in the country (Graph 1).

Source: Authors’ own elaboration based on concepts from the ^{Planas Marti & Cárdenas (2019)}.

Graph 1 Evolution of the Colombian Energy Matrix 2018 - 2022 

In the case of solar energy, three large-scale projects have been developed in the departments of Cesar, Santander, and Valle del Cauca. These solar parks, connected to the National Interconnected System (SIN), have a combined installed capacity of 176 MW-year. However, traditional sources such as hydroelectric power continue to predominate, accounting for 63.4%, while fossil energy sources (oil, gas, and coal) constitute 30.6% of the energy mix (Table 4).

By 2022, there are 17 solar parks interconnected to the National Interconnected System (SIN) located in the departments of Cesar, Santander, Sucre, Tolima, and Valle del Cauca. These parks have a cumulative energy generation capacity of 674.5 MW Graph 2.

Source: Authors’ own elaboration based on concepts from the ^{ELECTROHUILA 2021} and ^{ENEL Group 2023}.

Graph 2 Electric Power Generation Capacity in the Huila Department 

In the Huila Department, the energy matrix is primarily based on hydraulic sources from the Betania and El Quimbo hydroelectric dams and Small Hydroelectric Power Plants (PCH) in the municipalities of Garzón and Iquira. The integration of NCREs into the departmental energy matrix has only recently been considered. The construction of solar projects connected to the SIN in Huila is anticipated in the coming years, including projects by ECOPETROL with a total generation capacity of 25 MW and, a 10 MW solar farm by ELECTROHUILA, and a 230 MW solar park by a foreign company in the Tatacoa Desert, indicating a shift towards solar energy in the region.

4.2. Influential Technical Variables in Photovoltaic Solar Projects

Through documentary review, it was identified that the success of solar projects depends on certain climatological and geological variables that influence the energy efficiency that can be obtained from them. Therefore, these variables should be considered in advance during the project location analysis (Table 5).

4.3. Proposed Hybrid Project Management Methodology

The main purpose of the hybrid methodology is to structure an step by step complemented by the three methodologies analyzed and according to the analysis and study carried out; it is determined that in general, the aspects influenced by all three methodologies include the initial and ongoing justification of project viability; adaptability to the project’s context and needs based on its size, complexity, importance, capacity, and specific risk level; the identification, evaluation, and engagement of influential stakeholders for project success; management based on iterations or phases throughout the project’s lifecycle for better control and feedback on the project’s status; planning and quality assurance of deliverables; initial and ongoing risk exposure assessment; continuous management and adaptation to change; ongoing monitoring and control of progress; and the formation of a committed and organized project team with clearly defined roles and responsibilities; The similarities and differences are explained in abbreviated form in Figure 2 and Table 6.

Source: Authors’ own elaboration based on concepts from the ^{PMBOK® Seventh Edition (2021)}, ^{PRINCE2 Fifth Edition (2009)}, and ^{SCRUM SBOK Guide Third Edition (2017)}.

Figure 2 Venn Diagram of the Similarities and Differences between PMI, PRINCE2, and SCRUM 

On the other hand, the differential characteristics mentioned in points 1, 2, and 3 emphasize that a significant contrast found is the project development approach, as it directly affects project planning, the scope of objectives, deliverables, and the resources required to carry out scheduled activities. For example, SCRUM, as it lacks complete clarity from the project’s outset regarding the scope of the deliverables to be generated, requires the iterative application of its five events during each Sprint to ensure that the product is developed according to stakeholder expectations. In contrast, PRINCE2 requires clear upfront knowledge of the project’s objectives and deliverables to plan how tasks should be carried out and what resources are needed for it.

Regarding the perception of the project’s value, each methodology adopts a different perspective on what should be prioritized to achieve the objective. For SCRUM, it gives the highest priority to the specific needs of the customer regarding the product. PRINCE2 focuses on the results through the fulfillment of quality requirements established at the beginning for the products. In contrast, PMBOK® focuses on the benefits that will be generated by the project, where the products are merely the means by which the project’s value is obtained.

Despite these disparities, it is possible to design an integration between the methodologies that adapts to photovoltaic solar energy generation projects within a hybrid model. This hybrid approach is based on a predictive development focus with periodic or multiple deliveries of the products that make up the energy generation system (depending on how the management phases are established). However, it also incorporates certain aspects of the adaptive approach to provide greater flexibility and agility in relation to quality, progress, change, and risk.

Solar projects worldwide have managed to standardize detailed and fully defined initial planning for some common elements and processes, such as project scope, very approximate estimates of actual times and costs, and specific personnel and technology resources. Therefore, a waterfall development approach like PRINCE2 is better suited to managing these types of projects. Even though SCRUM is an evolutionary approach, it has some interesting characteristics that can enhance the management of the predictive approach.

Based on the information presented earlier, the initiative was taken to create a hybrid methodology proposal composed of the most significant contributions from these project methodologies to meet the needs of photovoltaic solar energy projects. This proposal describes the principles, thematic axes, process groups, activities, and the project’s lifecycle.

After researching the information related to the topic and conducting the necessary fieldwork within the framework of the research, it was determined that no project methodology is exclusively used for structuring and developing photovoltaic solar energy projects. Therefore, based on the main characteristics and particularities of these projects, the structure and content of the three project management methodologies, SCRUM, PRINCE2, and PMI, were evaluated. This evaluation aimed to propose a hybrid methodology that extracts the most relevant and applicable aspects for these projects, thus creating a new model that addresses the specific needs of such projects.

The basic foundations (principles, thematic axes, process groups, activities, and the project lifecycle) of a hybrid methodology for managing photovoltaic solar projects with a hybrid development approach were designed. This hybrid approach is based, in part, on the predictive analysis of PRINCE2, which involves robust initial planning and estimation of scope, schedules, costs, and resource needs in a project plan. On the other hand, it incorporates the adaptive approach of SCRUM, adapting project execution based on constant iteration of management phases to provide greater flexibility and agility in terms of quality, progress, change, and risk during construction (Figure 3).

Source: Authors’ own elaboration based on concepts from the ^{PMBOK® Seventh Edition (2021)}, ^{PRINCE2 Fifth Edition (2009)}, and ^{SCRUM SBOK Guide Third Edition (2017)}.

Figure 3 Project Lifecycle of the Hybrid Model 

The proposed design of the project lifecycle for this hybrid methodology adopts the phases described in the PMBOK. It starts with a linear model where the activities in the feasibility and design phase are carried out sequentially. Subsequently, in the construction and deliverable deployment phase, the processes of initial phase control, product delivery management, progress control during the phase, phase review, and retrospective are carried out iteratively in each of the established management phases. This can be done either with a specific uniform time period for each phase (e.g., one month) or with varying times for each phase based on the expected deliverables and the work required for their construction. Finally, in the closing phase, the linear model is resumed during the execution of the activities related to the complete project delivery, marking its conclusion.

In the feasibility phase, which comprises the project initiation process, the first step is to ensure, through the initial Business Case, that the scope, objectives, and expected results can be achieved. The other activities involve identifying all influential stakeholders, whether their roles are central or not in project planning and execution, and gathering all the necessary documentation to formally authorize the project’s commencement.

The standardization of various elements in the initial planning of photovoltaic solar energy projects makes it a case where the predictive approach of the PRINCE2 methodology allows for early and reasonably accurate estimations of costs and budgets, time and schedules, deliverables and their quality requirements, procurement/acquisition requirements, initial risk identification and management, and the establishment of progress control strategy/strategies.

The construction and deliverable deployment phases draw inspiration from the Deming or PDCA cycle, in which, through continuous iteration of its processes during each project management phase, it adapts the rigor employed in the SCRUM methodology regarding quality, risks, and change to have better control over project execution.

The initial phase control process begins with a general project retrospective through the analysis and update of the Business Case and the Project Plan, ensuring that there are no progress deviations outside the established cost and time tolerances for each phase and that the project remains viable overall. This process involves activities related to change management, the Stakeholder matrix, and risk register.

The product delivery management and progress control during the phase processes involve the most operational activities throughout the project life cycle. In these processes, the team manager is responsible for constructing the deliverables of the accepted work package for the phase. The quality strategy is put into practice, and the status of both the work package and the phase itself is closely monitored through Daily Standup meetings.

In the phase review and retrospective process, an element of SCRUM related to prioritizing rejected deliverables at the end of the phase is adapted. In this case, the products that did not fully meet the requirements in one phase are prioritized for the next phase, opting to continue the project execution according to the corresponding schedule adjustments. If necessary, authorization for an exception plan is considered in case the permissible change limits for that management phase are exceeded.

4.4. Guidelines for Structuring Photovoltaic Solar Energy Projects in Colombia

Based on the analysis and interpretation of the information, guidelines were established to guide those interested in structuring photovoltaic solar projects of the Self-Generator (GD), Small-Scale Self-Generator (AGPE), Large-Scale Self-Generator (AGGE), or Large Generator types. These guidelines are based on the life cycle, procedures, and activities presented in the proposed methodology and the legal requirements stipulated in ^{CREG 075} and ^{CREG 174} (Table 7).

Starting from the Initial Phase Control process, the project’s construction begins, which will be developed and controlled throughout the selected project management stages. Each management period consists of four (4) processes that must be performed iteratively until all project deliverables have been successfully delivered.

Depending on whether the project is GD, AGPE, AGGE, or a Large Generator, a decision is made regarding how to incorporate changes. For large generators, due to their broader scope, it may be necessary to use the rigorous process used in PRINCE2. Otherwise, the change request method proposed in SCRUM is recommended.