SolarFarmer Python SDK

The official Python SDK for SolarFarmer, a bankable solar PV design and energy yield assessment software from DNV. This SDK provides a typed Python interface that simplifies calling SolarFarmer APIs: build payloads, run 2D and 3D energy calculations, and process results programmatically.

Key Features

• Data models that mirror the API schema. Pydantic classes with field validation catch payload errors locally before the API call. Field descriptions and type hints improve discoverability.
• Two plant-building paths. Full control via EnergyCalculationInputs and component classes, or quick screening via PVSystem from high-level specs (DC and AC capacities, tilt, GCR)
• Structured results. CalculationResults gives direct access to annual/monthly metrics, loss trees, and time series without parsing raw JSON.
• Automatic endpoint handling. One function call runs 2D or 3D calculations. The SDK selects the right endpoint, polls async jobs, and supports cancellation via terminate_calculation().

Requirements

• Python >= 3.10 (tested on 3.10, 3.11, 3.12, 3.13)
• A SolarFarmer API key (commercial licence required; see API Key)

Installation

Install from PyPI:

pip install dnv-solarfarmer

The package is imported as solarfarmer regardless of the distribution name:

import solarfarmer as sf

Install with optional extras:

pip install "dnv-solarfarmer[notebooks]"  # JupyterLab and notebook support
pip install "dnv-solarfarmer[all]"        # full installation including pandas and matplotlib

For development and documentation extras (managed as dependency groups, requires uv):

uv sync --group dev    # linting and testing tools (for contributors)
uv sync --group docs   # documentation build tools

Install from source:

git clone https://github.com/dnv-opensource/solarfarmer-python-sdk
cd solarfarmer-python-sdk
pip install -e .

API Key

A SolarFarmer API key is required to run energy calculations. Obtain one from the SolarFarmer portal. For setup instructions, see the API key documentation.

Set your key as an environment variable (recommended):

export SF_API_KEY="your_api_key_here"

Alternatively, pass it directly as the api_key parameter to any function that calls the API.

Configuration

Optional Dependencies

The core SDK (pydantic, requests, tabulate) does not depend on pandas. Install the all extra for DataFrame-based features:

pip install "dnv-solarfarmer[all]"

This unlocks sf.from_dataframe() and sf.from_pvlib() for writing weather files from DataFrames, and enables CalculationResults to parse timeseries outputs into DataFrames. Without pandas, those functions raise ImportError or return None. All other SDK features work without it.

Getting Started

The SDK supports three workflows for different use cases:

See the Getting Started guide for full per-workflow walkthroughs, and the example notebooks for runnable end-to-end examples.

For broader use case demonstrations — including integrations with Solcast and Solar Resource Compass APIs — see the dnv-opensource/solarfarmer-sdk-examples repository.

Documentation

Full documentation (API reference, workflow guides, notebook tutorials):

https://dnv-opensource.github.io/solarfarmer-python-sdk/

To build and serve the documentation locally:

uv sync --group docs
zensical serve -o                          # build, serve, and open in browser (port 8000)
zensical serve -o -a localhost:8080        # use a different port

zensical serve builds the docs and starts a local server in one step. The -o flag opens the page automatically in your default browser.

Contributing

Fork the repository, create a branch, and submit a pull request to main. To set up a development environment:

git clone https://github.com/dnv-opensource/solarfarmer-python-sdk
cd solarfarmer-python-sdk
pip install -e .
uv sync --group dev

• Linting and formatting: ruff check solarfarmer/ tests/ and ruff format solarfarmer/ tests/
• Tests: pytest tests/ -v

All contributions should include tests for new functionality. For feature proposals or questions, contact solarfarmer@dnv.com. See CONTRIBUTING.md for full guidelines.

Getting Technical Support

• SDK documentation: https://dnv-opensource.github.io/solarfarmer-python-sdk/
• SolarFarmer API documentation: https://mysoftware.dnv.com/download/public/renewables/solarfarmer/manuals/latest/WebApi/Introduction/introduction.html
• Issue tracker: https://github.com/dnv-opensource/solarfarmer-python-sdk/issues
• Email: solarfarmer@dnv.com

License

Apache License, Version 2.0 — see LICENSE.

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for a full list of changes per release.