A case study for micro-grid PV: lessons learned from a rural electrification project in India

Abstract

Micro-grids in developing countries present a significant application opportunity for photovoltaics (PV) as an energy-enabling technology. The authors project 10 GW for this application in the next decade. The growth of this sector will be enhanced by shared learning of the best practices. The authors are part of a team that successfully installed 1/3 MW in micro-grids and presented the lessons learned and a useful methodology for determining key metrics. The PV is part of the rural electrification in India and is representative of current global PV micro-grids. This project provides basic lighting and electricity for 57 villages in Visakhapatnam in India. The project was carried out with a goal of optimizing power against cost. Various metrics are presented: costs, time, operations and maintenance, and performance. Also discussed are implementation strategies for cost containment, stakeholder considerations, and post-install support and user payment collection. Learning points are presented on project execution, engagement of local people, and challenges addressed. The aspect of demand capacity level (hours of availability) is examined in more detail, with modeling being performed to identify an optimal approach to increasing the level given the cost constraints. The combination of real data and modeling is a useful approach for PV and micro-grid optimization. This case study quantitatively supports the value of the use of PV for rural electrification. Beyond this example in India, where the federal government is planning an increase to more than 2000 sites, there is a significant opportunity for PV in the global micro-grid electrification context. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.