HOMER Energy Research Articles

Economic Assessment of the Potential for Renewable Based Microgrids Generation Systems: An Application in a University Building

This study evaluates the economic feasibility of implementing renewable energy-based microgrids at the University of Córdoba, Montería, Colombia. Simulations and optimizations were conducted using the HOMER Energy software, considering local renewable resources with significant potential. The analysis identified the combination of grid energy, photovoltaic systems, and a hydrokinetic turbine as the optimal solution, yielding a levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of 0.137 USD/kWh, an internal rate of return (IRR) of 11.9%, and a payback period of approximately 10 years. These results demonstrate the economic viability of microgrid implementation under these specific conditions. In contrast, the use of biomass gasification proved to be financially unviable due to its high initial investment costs, indicating the need for local technological development to reduce these barriers. Overall, the proposed system presents a sustainable and cost-effective alternative for energy generation in university facilities, contributing to energy diversification and long-term environmental benefits.

Achieving universal energy access in remote locations using HOMER energy model: a techno-economic and environmental analysis of hybrid microgrid systems for rural electrification in northeast Nigeria

The developing world continues to face substantial obstacles to achieving affordable and dependable electricity access. This issue is especially pertinent for Nigeria, where diesel generators are widely relied upon in urban and rural regions because of an underdeveloped and unreliable national grid. The lack of grid reliability is worsened in Northeastern Nigeria, an area plagued by conflict, extreme poverty, and grid infrastructure deterioration. This study investigates the feasibility of implementing community-scale microgrids in rural areas without grid connection access. It focuses on assessing the technical, economic, and environmental aspects of utilizing these microgrids to deliver inexpensive and dependable electricity to underserved populations to increase energy access. A case study was conducted in Kabuiri, a village with an estimated population of 2,300 residents and an estimated load demand of 610 kWh per day. A hybrid microgrid system was designed and optimized to meet the community’s load demand using HOMER software, sized to produce 610 kWh/day of electricity with a renewable penetration of 99%. The optimal solar PV/battery/generator system had a levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of $ 0.093 per kWh, a net present cost (NPC) of $266,709, and an annual operating cost of $9,110. The system contributed 1,624 kg CO2 eq/year of global warming potential and 56.81 kg O3 eq/year of smog formation during operation. Sensitivity analysis showed that the system could effectively react to or adapt to substantial increases in diesel prices, requiring only marginal increases in photovoltaic capacity and reduced generator usage to maintain the most cost-efficient operation. Additionally, the system model can be adapted based on the population of the remote community without substantially impacting the LCOE, however, the NPC increases with increase in population size. This research will aid in increasing energy access in remote locations by providing insights to stakeholders and energy access project developers.

Comprehensive case study on the technical feasibility of Green hydrogen production from photovoltaic and battery energy storage systems

AbstractThe growing demand for alternative energy sources to alleviate environmental impacts highlights the need to move from fossil fuels to renewable energy. This study demonstrated the technical feasibility of using a solar photovoltaic (PV) system for the production of green hydrogen. This research examined electrical and power data from a PV plant in Irecê, Bahia, using open data sources to provide insights into the production of green hydrogen from renewable sources. The system mainly depends on the use of a renewable source, PV solar energy, integrated with batteries, electrolyzers, and hydrogen tanks. Electrolyzer, battery, and hydrogen tank sizing analysis for optimal hydrogen production was effectively conducted using HOMER Energy software. The predicted system topology prioritizes a local DC network, optimizing efficiency for electrolyzers that have inherently low efficiency. The electrolyzer simulation involves initial Python‐based sizing and comprehensive sizing with HOMER Energy software, ensuring accuracy within a 10% discrepancy limit. This highlights the importance of analytical calculations and optimization software for sizing more complex systems.

Design and Techno-Economic Analysis of Hybrid Power Systems for Rural Areas: A Case Study of Bingöl

Today, many factors, especially the increasing world population and developing technology, increase the energy needs of people and societies day by day. The fact that fossil resources are both in danger of depletion and have negative environmental impacts has directed countries to new resources. The study focuses on the effective use of renewable energy sources (RES) and the evaluation of waste to meet the electricity and heat energy needs of Yiğit Harman Village, located in the Solhan district of Bingöl Province. For this purpose, a renewable-energy-based combined heat and power system (CHP) was designed using HOMER Pro software (version 3.14.2, Homer Energy LLC, Boulder, CO, USA). Solar, wind, biomass, and hydrogen energy sources were used, considering the resources of the region. Using the designed model, the entire electricity energy requirement and half of the heat energy were completely met by the region’s available RESs. In addition to the technical analysis, economic and environmental analyses were also conducted, and LCOE, NPC, and CO2 emission values were obtained as 0.271 USD/kWh, USD 739,772, and 37,958 kg/yr, respectively. These results indicate that with an investment of approximately USD 7000 per household, the electrical and thermal energy needs for 25 years can be met.

Optimization of the diesel photovoltaic isolated system installed in the Nazareth community using wind energy.

The objective of the work is the optimization of the isolated and hybridized electric power generation system with photovoltaic technology and genset, installed in the village of Nazareth belonging to the municipality of Uribia, Colombia. The optimization criteria established in this study consists of respecting what is already installed and from there propose various search spaces in HOMER Energy to find the optimal system configuration, the main idea is to minimize the consumption of diesel fuel through the inclusion of a wind system. two optimal scenarios are proposed, the first minimizes the participation of the genset to 10%, the second proposes a system of 100% renewable energy generation. Based on the results of the study, it is concluded that the system proposed in scenario C is the most pertinent alternative, It is concluded that the system proposed in scenario C is the most relevant alternative, because the system has 90% autonomy without the generator set.

Design Analysis of Microgrid Power System for Telecommunication Industries in Nigeria

A microgrid power system is an independent power system that provides off-grid power or grid backup. It consists of a conventional power system, a renewable power system, power storage, load management, and a control system. However, different microgrid configurations do exist, be it conventional energy sources or hybrid energy configurations, which have been discussed in this research to achieve an efficient and cost-competitive power system configuration. The microgrids could improve the quality of service for the telecommunications industries in Nigeria. The study takes into account the diverse network architecture of eight possible configured network models, and the topologies were simulated and tested for economic optimisation on HOMER energy software. The simulation results show that if any of the options were properly studied and harnessed, a permanent solution to power failure at our base station would be achieved. Similarly, the cost analysis presented reveals that the installation and operating expenses of any of the options were relatively cheap when compared to conventional procedures, lowering the tariff cost imposed on customers. Consequently, it will lead to the development of robust, off-grid power solutions for telecom infrastructure, enabling continuous connectivity in remote locations, decreasing downtime, and improving the country's digital communication network.

Electric Power Analysis and System Optimization of Micro-Hydro Power Plants at the Sentool Plantation, Jember

Sentool Plantation is a plantation area, agro-industrial and agro-tourism are located in Suci Village, Panti District, Jember Regency. This area is at the foot of Mount Argopuro with abundant water sources. In this area there is a river flow that can be utilized as a micro-hydro power plant (PLTMH). PLTMH is a relatively easy power plant to make and apply in rural areas or villages. PLTMH was chosen as an alternative energy source with the principle of developing renewable energy Therefore, in this community service activity want to effort to analyze potency of electric power generation and optimization of the MHP System at the Sentool Plantation which is useful as a consideration PLTMH development to meet the electricity needs of the local community and electricity needs for the development of agro-tourism. Power potential analysis process and optimization of the PLTMH system is carried out with two stages of data analysis, namely the calculation of the potential power theoretical and simulation using HOMER Energy software. HOMER Energy is used for profit simulation. The greatest potency generated power is 53.12 kWh with a discharge of 0.398 m3/s and the smallest is 18.05 kWh with a discharge of 0.135 m3/s. Simulations using HOMER Energy software produce system configurations PLTMH with an estimated capital cost of IDR 48,600,000, operational costs and maintenance 42,900,000 per year, NPC of IDR -2,557,215,000, LCoE of IDR-573.63. PLTMH has a capacity of 37.1 kW with annual production of 290,573 kW, get a profit of IDR 212,747,987.50 from the sale of energy. The results of the calculation of the water discharge, the height of the water fall and the generated power are quite high, the water flow in the Sentool Plantation is technically feasible to build a micro-hydro power plant (PLTMH).

Modelling and Optimization of Clean and Affordable Electricity Solution for Small-Scale Savings and Credit Cooperatives (SACCOs)

Renewable energy exploitation is among the development strategies set by the government of Rwanda on the roadmap to 2023/2024 universal electricity access and the United Nations plans by 2030. Numerous previous studies on clean energy technologies in Rwanda have mostly focused on households’ usage but there are currently no studies describing the feasibility of clean energy technologies for financial institutions. The skepticism on renewable energy in Africa was previously reported by some personnel. Having realized that most SACCOs (Savings and Credit Co-Operatives) in Rwanda use diesel technology for backup/emergency electricity supply, taking consideration of abundant solar resources in Rwanda, having seen the viability and feasibility studies from other countries of renewable energy for different institutions (financial included); this work uses the HOMER Energy Software and the electricity load profile of a typical SACCO in Rwanda to analyse the affordability and viability of on-site renewable energy generation for SACCO in Rwanda. The results reveal that a solar PV system with storage can be the optimal solution (with levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of 0.713 $/kWh which is cheaper than 0.73 $/kWh for diesel technology) for SACCOs located in both off-grid areas and grid-connected areas (with 0.041 $/kWh LCOE which is lower than the current electricity tariff in Rwanda). The findings in this work can serve as basic tools/materials for policy drafters in Rwanda on how financial institutions can contribute to climate change mitigation through self-renewable energy exploitation.

Production of Green Hydrogen in Bangladesh and its Levelized Cost

Hydrogen is an excellent source of energy that can be burnt directly and used in fuel cells with no emission to environment. In recent years, green hydrogen has become a research interest in many developed and developing countries. The main barrier to this green fuel is the production cost. Production of hydrogen using solar photovoltaic (PV) powered water electrolysis process might reduce the production cost. This paper presents the determination of the Levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH) produced from a PV-based electrolysis plant which is built in Energy Institute, Dhaka University. The analysis uses LCOH and Life Cycle Cost (LCC) methods to determine the production cost of hydrogen. HOMER Energy software has been used to determine the electricity cost. The plant's lifetime is assumed to be 25 years, with a discount rate of 5%. The Levelized electricity cost from the invested Solar PV plant is about BDT 37.92, and the pay back period is about four years. The electricity consumption of the hydrogen generating plant is 4225 kWh/year, and the amount of hydrogen yield is 128520 kg/year. It is found that the LCOH of green hydrogen is BDT 3.41/kg by LCOH method and BDT 6.79/kg by LCC. The determined cost is very competitive concerning the international market price which is about US$13.99/kg. If production cost becomes comparatively lower, Bangladesh could become a remarkable green hydrogen producer with a remarkable impact in the international market. The model and analysis might help to design, assess and implement such projects in Bangladesh and establish a green hydrogen economy. DUJASE Vol. 6 (2) 64-71, 2021 (July)

Hybrid Energy System Model in Matlab/Simulink Based on Solar Energy, Lithium-Ion Battery and Hydrogen

In this work, a model of an energy system based on photovoltaics as the main energy source and a hybrid energy storage consisting of a short-term lithium-ion battery and hydrogen as the long-term storage facility is presented. The electrical and the heat energy circuits and resulting flows have been modelled. Therefore, the waste heat produced by the electrolyser and the fuel cell have been considered and a heat pump was considered to cover the residual heat demand. The model is designed for the analysis of a whole year energy flow by using a time series of loads, weather and heat profile as input. This paper provides the main set of equations to derive the component properties and describes the implementation into MATLAB/Simulink. The novel model was created for an energy flow simulation over one year. The results of the simulation have been verified by comparing them with well-established simulation results from HOMER Energy. It turns out that the novel model is well suited for the analysis of the dynamic system behaviour. Moreover, different characteristics to achieve an energy balance, an ideal dimensioning for the particular use case and further research possibilities of hydrogen use in the residential sector are covered by the novel model.

Eliminate the Migration of Farmers to Cities by Supporting Renewable Energy Projects

We want to highlight the importance and necessity of using clean energy sources in Iraq, especially in rural and desert areas. After the increase in companies that produce solar cells, led to cheaper prices and increased efficiency by the manufacturers. In this paper, we present a study that is a good example of the amount of wasted and unfortunately underutilized solar energy. By collecting weather and environmental data for the Al-Rifai area and studying it through the use of the HOMER energy program, we want to propose a solution to stop the migration of farmers from the countryside to the city by supporting clean and cheap energy projects, overcoming the prevailing unemployment and increasing agricultural production. We took an example here of desert land with an area of 100 acres in the city of Al-Rifai in southern Iraq, which suffers from the phenomenon of drought and the migration of farmers to nearby cities, and we found it is possible to produce energy in this place at a very cheap cost (0.0119 $/kWh).

Economic Integration of Renewable and Conventional Power Sources—A Case Study

In this study, we have presented an optimal microgrid design that ensures the uninterrupted energy supply to Mirpur University of Engineering and Technology (MUST), Azad Jammu and Kashmir AJK, Pakistan at the cheapest price by using reliable energy resources. The availability of energy resources, environmental viability, and economic feasibility are the key parameters of design. The available resources for the MUST site include the National grid, Solar photovoltaic (SPV), Battery bank, and Diesel generator. The data of electrical load, solar illumination, atmospheric temperature at the university, diesel fuel cost, SPV module lifetime, SPV degradation factor, SPV efficiency, SPV cost, battery cost, battery life, national grid energy price, load shedding and toxic emissions have been considered valuables in designing the hybrid micro-grid. The difference in net present cost (NPC) of the optimal design and the worst design is calculated by considering the above parameters. The proposed optimal microgrid design supplies energy to the load using SPV, Diesel generator, and battery bank with NPC of $250,546 and the renewable fraction of 99%. Whereas the worst design includes the Diesel generator and battery bank as energy supplying sources with the NPC of $2.14 M and a renewable fraction of 0%. Simulations performed using HOMER Pro software (HOMER Energy, HOMER Pro-3.11, Boulder, CO, USA) proved that after considering all the data and requirements mentioned above, out of 979 feasible designs, the proposed hybrid microgrid design is best suitable for MUST.

Impact of installing renewable energy sources on a small-scale power network in the Caribbean

Many small island states in the Caribbean like Antigua and Barbuda depend heavily on petroleum-based products for power generation. Given the fluctuating oil prices, there is now an urgent push for increased energy security. Antigua is one of the fastest-growing islands for grid-connected Renewable Energy Sources (RES). Whilst the increase in grid-connected RES improves the islands’ energy security, and it is equally important to understand the impact that RES have on the network’s reliability and security. Thus, a base case model of the power network was built, and the following areas were analysed: load flow, contingency analysis, and fault analysis. The Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA) 69kV power network is used as a case study for this project. PowerWorld and Homer Energy software have been used to simulate and model the grid. Results from the project show that RES changes the power flow and could help to improve the system voltage profile if placed correctly. Whilst increased penetration of Wind Turbine Generators (WTG) on the grid increases the system fault levels, they also play a key role in active and reactive power control. This means that the APUA network must be more flexible, and system operators must have network visibility to react to changes on the network. The aim of this paper is to investigate the impact that RES (in particular, wind and solar PV) has on the operational, security, or reliability of a small-scale power network.

Design of grid connected microgrid with solar photovoltaic module

The microgrid with renewable energy sources (RES) is capable to fulfill the local energy demand, and can inject the remaining energy in to power grid at distribution level. It can mitigate the problem of greenhouse gases emission too. This paper discussed the optimal design and simulation of grid connected micro grid for a residential building of the Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh region, considering solar photovoltaic system. A model is proposed and simulated using Homer energy software. Simulation results reveals that the proposed residential microgrid is cost effective as compared to the utility grid in fulfilling the full load demand. It is calculated that the cost of solar generation is 0.081 $/kWh while for the grid it is 0.099 $/kWh for the considered region. Further, impact of proposed grid on the environment is also analyzed, it is also observed the proposed grid design inject the negligible harmful greenhouse gases in the environment.

Sustainable Energy Solutions for Community Housing

With increasing population, it is resulting in faster depletion of combustible resources for energy, hence it is needed to implement renewable resources to cater to energy demands of community housings for a sustainable future. Our work integrates renewable resources like solar, wind along with grid energy to provide a hybrid system, to cater to the above stated energy needs. The above integration is done with the help of trial version of an energy software known as HOMER Energy Pro, which is used for microgrid and any dispersed power generation system planning and its effective development. This helps decide the best system configuration based on the geographic location and resources available, leading us to provide with a sustainable hybrid system solution for 250 average 2 BHK houses for the best possible economy and efficiency with a better future scope. Good improvement in Carbon Credit is seen.

Techno‐economic feasibility study on electric vehicle and renewable energy integration: A case study

AbstractThis work simulated the economic viability of electric vehicles (EVs) and renewable energy charging integration at a university campus. Homer energy simulation software was used to determine the optimal solution for the power loading, energy dispatch, and economic feasibility of each electricity source. Three scenarios were considered: case 1 (C1) is the baseline that provided the electric parameters considering a grid without renewable energy integration; case 2 (C2) is the addition of solar and wind systems supplying power to the grid and EVs; case 3 (C3) is the same conditions as C2, but EVs operate on vehicle‐to‐grid (V2G) scheme supplying energy to grid. Economic output solutions were classified according to the lowest net present value (NPV). The V2G mechanism considered on the C3 offered conditions that decreased the costs of operation of the system, estimating the lowest NPV among the options analyzed. In C2, the simulations recorded higher costs due to the system operation associated with extra local load to power the EVs. In both C2 and C3 scenarios, EVs aided the renewable energy sources' penetration on the system; however, the operation of EVs on a V2G mechanism contributed to the highest rate of renewable energy penetration.

Efficacy of Energy Wheeling to Endorse Renewable Energy Generation

Industry, which forms the lifeblood of South Africa’s economy, is under threat as a result of increased electricity pricing and unstable supply. Wheeling of energy, which is a method to transport electricity generated from an Independent Power Producer (IPP) to an industrial consumer via the utility’s network, could potentially address this problem. This paper presents a technical and economic evaluation to determine the viability of wheeling 16MW wind or solar energy between an industrial consumer and an IPP via the utility’s network in a regulated electricity market. Using DIgSILENT PowerFactory and HOMER Energy, the viability has been evaluated based on levelized cost of electricity (LCOE); net present cost (NPC); distributed generation (DG) technology; DG distance from the load; available renewable resources and impact on network parameters. The results of the study show that (i) wind energy is the most viable economic option, (ii) the voltage profile at the point of common coupling (POC) increases as the distance between the load and DG increase, which has to be mitigated by using voltage control measures. Based on the results, wheeling of renewable energy could be a solution to address the electricity demands of industrial consumers.

Impact of Electric Vehicle Charging Strategy on the Long-Term Planning of an Isolated Microgrid

Isolated microgrids, such as islands, rely on fossil fuels for electricity generation and include vehicle fleets, which poses significant environmental challenges. To address this, distributed energy resources based on renewable energy and electric vehicles (EVs) have been deployed in several places. However, they present operational and planning concerns. Hence, the aim of this paper is to propose a two-level microgrid problem. The first problem considers an EV charging strategy that minimizes charging costs and maximizes the renewable energy use. The second level evaluates the impact of this charging strategy on the power generation planning of Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos, Ecuador. This planning model is simulated in HOMER Energy. The results demonstrate the economic and environmental benefits of investing in additional photovoltaic (PV) generation and in the EV charging strategy. Investing in PV and smart charging for EVs could reduce the N P C by 13.58%, but a reduction in the N P C of the EV charging strategy would result in up to 3.12%.

The influence of the solar radiation database and the photovoltaic simulator on the sizing and economics of photovoltaic-diesel generators

This study evaluated the outcome differences when adopting five different solar irradiation databases on the sizing of hybrid solar photovoltaic-diesel generators designed to supply electricity to isolated minigrids. To do this, the two most widely adopted photovoltaic (PV) simulation packages in the market, namely PVsyst® and HOMER Energy® were used. The different origins, data timespan, space and time resolution, of the five most relevant solar irradiation databases available for the region were compared. A case study was presented to illustrate the influences of the solar irradiation database and the solar simulation tool on the resulting PV generator. Furthermore, the hourly behavior of the energy supply to an existing load in a minigrid in the Brazilian Amazon was evaluated, together with the savings in diesel obtained with the resulting PV generator. Evaluating the five options of solar radiation databases, for the same PV plant configuration, variations of up to 19.7% were found in the expectation of PV generation. When the simulation software package was varied, the combined effect (radiation database X PV system sizing tool) showed differences of up to 20.6%. This demonstrates that despite having different algorithms, computational tools have a small influence (less than 1%) on results. These combined differences, taking into account the load curve behavior and the total diesel generation capacity installed at the site, resulted in over 100% differences in the optimum PV generator size in the case study. The total savings in diesel fuel, over a 15-years period, ranged from $ 6.5 million to over $ 16 million (>2.5 times) for the smallest PV system. This demonstrates the importance of the correct choice of database. These evaluations can be extended to minigrids of any size elsewhere. The novelty and originality of this study is to demonstrate and quantify for the first time the influence of the solar radiation database and the PV simulator package on the sizing of PV-diesel generators. The consequences of this study are not only of scientific and academic importance, but of economic and commercial interest as well.

Economic feasibility of battery energy storage systems for replacing peak power plants for commercial consumers under energy time of use tariffs

Abstract This work assesses the economic feasibility of replacing conventional peak power plants, such as Diesel Generator Sets (DGS), by using distributed battery energy storage systems (BESS), to implement Energy Time Shift during peak hours for commercial consumers, whose energy prices vary as a function of energy time of use (ToU tariffs). The economic analysis is performed by calculating the break-even point (BEP) for four different battery technologies: (i) lead-acid (OPzS); (ii) nickel-cadmium (NiCd); (iii) lithium-ion (Li-NCA); and (iv) Redox Flow (FeCr), using the HOMER Energy software in the simulations. One case study is analyzed for a commercial consumer connected to the MV network (Campinas/Brazil). The results show that, considering the updated 2018 BESS costs, none of the types of battery analyzed is economically attractive as a replacement for DGS. However, it can be observed that a 31%, 38% and 26% reduction in the costs of OPzS, Li-NCA and FeCr batteries, respectively, makes the installation of BESS viable. It is estimated that, in a 5- to 6-year horizon, these technologies would become economically attractive as a result of the strong decrease of the expected costs for the years to come.