Wind based hybrid systems for increased RES penetration in isolated grids: The case study of Anafi (Greece)

Abstract

The dependence of the Non-Interconnected Islands on diesel power stations increases the cost of producing electricity in comparison to the mainland. This study focuses on the green energy transition of Non-Interconnected Islands, and Anafi was selected as a characteristic case. The average cost of electricity production from thermal units in Anafi was estimated to be 539 €/MWh with a peak load of 0.55 MW. Two different green energy transition scenarios are proposed for Anafi that include the addition of PV panels plus a wind turbine (scenario 1) or PV panels plus a battery (scenario 2) that would operate along the conventional diesel engines and utilized the software RETScreen program for the design and the analysis of these two proposed hybrid systems. In scenario 1, the renewable systems produced 2793 MWh, while in scenario 2 this value was simulated to be 995.51 MWh. In both proposed scenarios there is a significant penetration from Renewable Energy Sources from 68.2% (scenario 2) to 90.3% (scenario 1). In addition, in both cases there is a significant reduction in carbon dioxide emissions from 80%–95% in comparison to the baseline case which produces 2543 tons of CO2 annually. The cost of the proposed installations has been calculated to be 5.2 m € and 5.6 m € for scenarios 1 and 2, while the net present value (NPV) of the project becomes positive from the sixth year and the eleventh year respectively. The earnings of a green transition project of this nature can be allocated for the maintenance of the island's own project, as well as for the financing of new similar projects on other islands. The expected result of this work is the proposal of a system that will largely cover the energy needs of the island, reduce the cost of production per kilowatt hour and will contribute to the green energy transition of the other Non-Interconnected Islands