Techno-Economic Feasibility Study of Installing Solar PV Systems on Gas Stations’ Rooftops in Kuwait

Abstract

Considering the fact that Kuwait receives annual global irradiation of about 2088 kWh/m2, the potential for utilizing solar energy for electric power generation cannot be overlooked. Micro-grid connected PV plants are one important option for the energy mix that can be pursued to meet part of the future demand for energy. To assess the viability of such option, we investigated the technical and the economic feasibility of installing PV solar panels on local gas stations’ rooftops. Gas stations were targeted because of their unobstructed flat rooftops and being mostly far away from high-rise buildings and other shade-causing objects. The daily and monthly energy consumption data of one typical gas station were used in this study. PVsyst software was used to determine the optimal technical parameters of the system. The available rooftop area of the gas station, fitted with the selected PV models and the inverters resulted in an installed capacity of 77.3 kWp. The system was able to generate 121.3 MWh/year which covers about 72 % of the annual energy consumption of the gas station. Factors affecting the system output such as near shading, soiling, and temperature effects were considered. The economic analysis of the system estimated the cost of kWh to be around $ 0.088. The overall cost of the system incurred during its lifetime (25 years), including inverters replacement cost, maintenance cost, and financial cost, was about $ 269,200.