Hybrid Renewable Energy System for Rural Electrification in Togo: Techno-economic Assessment (A Case Study)

Abstract

Globally, access to reliable electricity improves the well-being of people, provides quality education, and ensures good health. In this study, a PV/Wind hybrid renewable energy for rural electrification is designed for the canton of KPASSOUADE in the central region of Togo. The selection of the community was done with the QGIS software. Thereafter, the Hybrid Optimization Model for Electric Renewable (HOMER) software was used to perform the technical and economic analysis. The daily load of the canton of KPASSOUADE is 2617 kWh/d. Three load categories were considered: Household, commercial, and community. The electric mini-bus was considered in the load estimation to cover the transport needs. The findings showed that 450 kW of PV, 10 Wind turbines of 20kW, 253 kW of converter, and 6556 kWh of battery storage is the most optimal configuration compared to other power systems to meet the daily energy needs of the canton of KPASSOUADE. The PV/Wind hybrid energy system will generate annual electricity of 1294813 kWh/ year. The community will consume 26876 kWh of AC load and 85941 kWh of deferrable load. The hybrid renewable energy system has a levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of 0.10 USD/kWh and 4.06 million USD as net present cost (NPC). The LCOE of the HRES is found to be low compared to the cost of energy of the nation's thermal power plant which was 0.11 USD/ kWh in 2021. The sensitivity analysis on the changes in the inflation rate; discount rate; wind speed; capital, replacement, and operation cost are also presented. The development of renewable energy plan with a focus on a hybrid renewable energy system is the key policy recommendation.