Abstract
Libya is currently interested in utilizing renewable energy technologies to reduce the energy dependence on oil reserves and Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. The objective of this study is to investigate the feasibility of a 10MW grid-connected PV power plant in Libya. NASA data are used to analyze the global horizontal irradiation, direct normal irradiation, and air temperature of 22 selected locations in Libya and to evaluate the potential of solar energy. RETScreen software is used to estimate the energy production, GHG emissions, and financial parameters for the 22 locations. Based on the solar atlas map, it is noticed that the highest global horizontal irradiation is in the southern part of Libya, which ranged from 2100 to 2500kWh/m2. These results indicate that Libya has a huge solar energy potential that can be used to generate electricity. Moreover, based on techno-economic results, it is observed that the highest electricity generation of 22067.13MWh is recorded at Al Κufrah and the lowest at Al Jabal al Akhdar with a value of 17891.38MWh. Furthermore, Al Kufrah and Murzuq are the best locations for the future installation of PV power plants from annual energy and the economic parameters point of view. The maximum value of power that can be generated by the plant was estimated to be 22.06GW.
Highlights
Energy is an indispensable need, which was met with the consumption of conventional fossil fuels until quite recently
The results showed that Libya has a huge renewable energy potential especially solar and wind, which could be used for various purposes such as electricity generation, communication systems, and mechanical activities
It is found that the highest annual value of Direct Normal Irradiation (DNI) of 2429.203kWh/m2 occurs in Misratah and the lowest value (2267.607kWh/m2) is recorded in Darnah
Summary
Energy is an indispensable need, which was met with the consumption of conventional fossil fuels until quite recently. The use of fossil fuels has polluted the environment and contributed to the climate change due to Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions [1]. The environmental problems resulting from the increasing fossil fuel consumption encouraged researchers to investigate alternative sources of energy that would be able to generate energy while protecting the environment [2,3,4]. Solar energy has become an important alternative source of energy because it is clean, cost-effective, and readily available. Solar energy can be converted to electricity by Photo Voltaic (PV) modules. The utilizing of PV systems has met the electricity demand in many countries. Many studies investigated the potential for solar energy to generate power in various countries. Authors in [5] assessed the feasibility analysis of a 6MW grid-connected
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