Feasibility study of integrating renewable energy generation system in Sark Island to reduce energy generation cost and CO2 emissions

Abstract

The island of Sark, located in the English Channel, has endured an electricity distribution crisis for the past few years, resulting in high electricity costs almost six times higher than UK mainland energy prices. This article is focused on a methodology for finding the best renewable energy system with the lowest levelized cost of energy (LCOE) in comparison to the current energy rate of 66 p/kWh. Three different main cases of study have been compared in performance for different levels of renewable energy integration and energy storage, evaluating the estimated size of the system, installation cost and CO2 emissions. The results, which depend on the assumptions outlined, show that Case 2 renewable energy generation system is the most suitable in terms of reduction of CO2 emissions and expected earnings from a lower LCOE. Uncertainty in the results could be minimized if actual data from the island is made available by following the same methodology to find the best solution to the island’s current energy generation problem. Due to non-available data for the load profiles and wind velocity a set of assumption were required to be implemented. As such, two different load profiles were selected—one with a peak of energy consumption in winter and the other with a summer peak.