Economic evaluation of hybrid electrical systems for rural electrification: A case study of a rural community in Nigeria

Abstract

Diesel generators have long been in use in rural communities in Nigeria despite the impact of emissions caused by these generators on the environment. Due to the high cost and fluctuation in the diesel price and the need for a greener environment, such electric generating systems seem not to be economical and environmentally friendly and need to be addressed. The potential of utilizing the major renewable energy sources prevailing in the Umuejim Amorka community was investigated based on related site surveys and data collected from each household. This paper also investigates the feasibility and economic viability of employing a hybrid-electric system in rural communities. The HOMER software that analyzes system configuration was used to study the application and functional limitations of each hybridized arrangement. The results showed that the renewable energy (RE) based system, photovoltaic (PV)//battery(B), has the lowest cost of energy (COE) and net profit cost (NPC) compared to the PV/Diesel Generator (DG)/B and standalone DG systems. Although the diesel generator (DG) hybrid-electric system (HES) has lower NPC and COE values compared to PV/DG/B, the DG system has the highest significant pollution emission. Furthermore, the result revealed that the PV/B system has the lowest capital and total costs compared to the other two HESs. Moreso, the PV/B system, has the highest return on investment (ROI), making the system the most economically viable and adjudged to be a better candidate for rural community electrification demands.