Techno-economic assessment of a grid-connected photovoltaic system installed at unioeste (western paraná state university), cascavel - pr campus

Abstract

This article aimed to carry out the techno-economic assessment of a grid-connected photovoltaic system at Western Paraná State University - UNIOESTE, Cascavel - PR campus. The system was built in order to meet the electricity demand of the Alternative Energy Systems Analysis Centre (CASA Project) and consists of ten photovoltaic modules with 330 Wp each (two strings with five modules in series), and a 4 kWp voltage inverter. For the technical assessment of the system, energy data collections were carried out in four different ways: the first one using the data that is provided by the bidirectional meter installed in the system; the second one through electricity bills provided by the local electric utility (COPEL); the third one through the Solar Man website, where the data provided by the inverter is stored; and the fourth one using data recorded by the EMBRASUL RE7000 electrical quantities analyser. As for the economic evaluation, a system feasibility analysis was performed, using the Net Present Value (NPV), the Internal Rate of Return (IRR) and the Discounted Payback (DP) as decision criteria. The results obtained in the study show that the values of electricity generation collected by the website and by the RE7000 are close, however, the values of the website are slightly higher. The total efficiency of the system was 13.32%. The return on investment occurs in 12 years, the IRR is 14.1% and the NPV is R$25,564.07, values that make the investment viable, but very close to the minimum acceptable limits.