Optimal cost analysis of off-grid hybrid renewable energy system with PV degradation and electrical load variation using multi-year module and advanced storage module

Abstract

Awareness about the effects of global warming and free availability of renewable resources has stimulated many countries to consider solar, wind and hydel energy as an alternative to conventional energy sources. Combining these renewable energy resources to form a hybrid renewable energy system can provide a reliable, economic and environmental friendly solution that can address the ever-rising power demand. This paper aims to simulate and optimize an off-grid PV/Wind system to meet the electrical load demand of 1, 606 kWh/day with a peak load of 258.31 kW of an educational institute namely CMR Institute of Technology, located in Bangalore, Karnataka, India. The hybrid system utilizes diesel generator and Li-Ion [ASM - Advanced Storage Module] battery as a backup and storage system. HOMER ENERGY's latest version of HOMER software called HOMER Pro v3.6.3 is used to model the hybrid system. This version takes into consideration PV degradation per year and electrical load variation per year over the project lifespan to calculate the minimal Net Present Cost (NPC) and Cost of Energy (COE), which was lagging in the earlier versions. By applying sensitivity analysis for solar radiation, wind speed and diesel fuel price and comparing the hybrid system with and without multi-year input module, it was found that the PV/DG system was most suitable to meet the electrical load demand of the institute followed closely by the hybrid PV/Wind/DG system. The inclusion of multi-year input ensured more accurate cost analysis. The simulation was performed by considering INR as the currency.