RESEARCHMICROREGFENERATION
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priority should be given to sizing the system appropriately and to energy efficiency. In fact, regardless of the choices, energy efficiency is very important since it can influence dramatically the energy load, and therefore the amount of power generation required.
This will impact investment costs and the financial viability of the project. In fact, for most countries supply and demand side management should constitute the first energy policy. In many rural communities, there is a tendency to focus on the reduction of short-term investment costs, which will necessitate on-going awareness raising and efforts to bolster local availability of energy-efficient appliances. The decision on the energy sources to use is of course central. Diesel is an expensive resource often difficult to distribute in rural areas. Consequently, 100% diesel-fuelled mini-grids likely will be more expensive on a lifetime basis than hybrid ones, and they are also less autonomous as fuel availability cannot be assured. Hybrid mini- grids, in contrast, utilize local renewable resources, making it less likely that power will not be available.
Several types of renewable energy technologies can be utilised in mini-grids: Solar photovoltaic (PV) is suitable for almost any location around the world and is also
comparatively easy to install, maintain and scale up. However, initial investment costs are higher than those of other technologies.
Small or micro-hydro is the cheapest technology, but also the most site dependent, as it requires a river with specific flow rate and volume conditions. Small hydro is a mature technology which has been installed all over the world over the past 30 years.
Small wind power technology is very site specific, since wind conditions vary dramatically from place to place therefore, wind resources must be carefully studied before a system is installed.
Batteries and diesel gensets are other important components of hybrid systems. The battery is a central element for the cost of electricity over the lifetime of the system. Appropriate energy management should maximize the lifetime of the batteries as replacement costs represent an important part of the overall project costs. The genset will play an important role in ensuring the battery is charged.
The use of diesel generators should be minimized as fuel is costly; however, the genset is important to ensure quality of service when the other technologies are low or when the demand is high.
www.solar-pv-management.com Issue V 2011
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