Costa, Ana Cristina Marinho daRodrigues, Marta Lourenço2023-11-232023-11-232023-10-25http://hdl.handle.net/10362/160362Dissertation presented as the partial requirement for obtaining a Master's degree in Statistics and Information Management, specialization in Risk Analysis and ManagementElectricity is a form of secondary energy as it is obtained by converting other forms of energy. These energies can be classified as renewable or non-renewable. In this dissertation, the focus will be on renewable energies, more specifically on photovoltaic solar energy. The production of a solar panel is affected by the environment that surrounds it, the local meteorology and by its characteristics, this study aims to analyze the spatial distribution of these equipments and their production efficiency in Continental Portugal considering several factors (either physical or external to the equipment, such as meteorology or soiling). Soiling is the phenomenon in which the panel loses efficiency due to the accumulation of dust or particles on its surface. Due to the lack of information on the effect of soiling on the energy efficiency of solar panels according to their location, this study will focus more deeply on this phenomenon. To identify which are the local characteristics that most affect the efficiency of each solar panel, Multiscale Geographically Weighted Regression models were estimated with a set of explanatory factors that, supported by several studies, represent the effect of soiling. The results show that wind speed is positively correlated with efficiency on a global scale, and that irradiation has a negative impact on a regional scale in southern Portugal. It is suggested that in future studies data with greater spatial and temporal resolution be used, in particular monthly or seasonal data.porSolar panelsSolar EfficiencySoilingSDG 7 - Affordable and clean energySDG 9 - Industry, innovation and infrastructureSDG 12 - Responsible production and consumptionSDG 13 - Climate actionmaster thesis203389158