Though in all honesty you probably aren t ready for solar panels yet if the cost bothers you.
Factorio optimal solar layout.
Solar panels and accumulators optimal ratio.
The optimal ratio is 0 84 21 25 accumulators per solar panel and 23 8 solar panels per megawatt required by your factory this ratio accounts for solar panels needed to charge the accumulators this means that you need 1 428 mw of production of solar panels and 100mj of storage to provide 1 mw of power over one day night cycle.
That is why that electrical grid uses 8 solar panels and 6 accumulators.
As for which to actually pick i d say it s up to your preference cilya s design with accumulators instead of a roboport is the only one with perfect 0 86 ratio among popular designs used by factorio players.
This so sums up factorio perfectionism and practicalism.
I leave a space to walk between.
Have a browse through the images for design ideas or download the designs from the blueprint book section at the end.
This factorio 0 15 workshop covers a solar layout design by zarklord.
Plop a sub station down and fill it with solar pannels.
Just add as needed for each.
I don t beleve in perfect ratios for solar.
And there you go an optimal real system of solar panels and accumulators for any network.
For a radar n s is calculated at 7 14 which rounds up to 8.
Now that factorio 1 0 has released i felt it s time to get back in the game to fix the old designs and maybe make something new.