Abstract
Forecasting the solar energy production is a key issue in the large-scale integration of the photovoltaic plants into the existing electricity grid. This paper reports on the research progress in forecasting the solar energy production at the West University of Timisoara, Romania. Firstly, the experimental facilities commissioned on the Solar Platform for testing the forecasting models are briefly described. Secondly, a new tool for the online forecasting of the solar energy production is introduced. Preliminary tests show that the implemented procedure is a successful trade-off between simplicity and accuracy.