An Assessment of Solar Micro-Grid System in the Islands of Bangladesh for Sustainable Energy Access

Abstract

The isolated islands in the northern Bay of Bengal face difficulties accessing electricity from the central grid and use fossil fuel-based generators, which causes health risks, environmental damage, and high expenses. So, this study aims to replace these fossil fuel-based power sources with Solar Photovoltaic (SPV) microgrids to provide continuous power to remote islands and contribute to reducing emissions. A specific location on the island of Manpura is selected for the SPV plant installation, considering land availability and vulnerability to erosion. Solar power density and other technical parameters such as Direct Normal Irradiation, Global Horizontal Irradiation, Diffuse Horizontal Irradiation, Global Tilted Irradiation, the optimum tilt angle of Photovoltaic (PV) modules, air temperature, and terrain elevation are analyzed using some prominent online analytical tools named “Global Solar Atlas (GSA)”, “Photovoltaic Geographical Information System (PVGIS)” etc. Based on these datasets, a 10kW ground-mounted PV system using monocrystalline silicon solar panels is designed for off-grid operation. The developed system can generate 14.808 MWh of energy per year. This design’s environmental and social impacts are critically analyzed considering the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Compared with conventional energy sources, the results show that the 10kW microgrid SPV system can reduce CO2 emissions by 284 tons. Financial analysis shows the recovery period of the investment based on electricity production at around 8.8 years, making solar PV microgrids a viable option for remote areas like Manpura Island.