Hybrid system for electrification and upliftment of northern rural region of togo

Abstract

Availability of abundant energy sources is one of the factors, which help in the socio-economic development of any country. Without energy sources, it is impossible for any country to produce, transport and transform products for general human activities. Togo, a country of West Africa, is a net importer of petroleum products and produces only 40% of its electrical energy requirements. At the level of rural electrification, the rate of access to electricity is 6.3% in 2016. Although Togo is a country with a high potential for bioenergy and solar energy production. Hybrid photovoltaic/biodiesel systems (PV/BG) could therefore contribute to reducing the country's energy dependence and increasing the rate of access to electricity in rural areas while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This research presents the economic viability of a hybrid system (PV/BG from Jatropha Curcas) for the electrification of a village in the central region of northern Togo. The main objective of this research is to propose a model of electric energy production system in rural areas from renewable sources at a low operating cost while ensuring positive socio-economic impacts for the inhabitants of the environment. The analysis and optimization of the techno-economic performance of the proposed hybrid system is done using the hybrid optimization model for electric renewable (HOMER). The simulations has been carried out under various climate conditions and fuel price used as sensitivity variables. This research has proven that despite the high cost of biodiesel produced from Jatropha Curcas (1.6 USD/ litter) the hybrid (PV/biodiesel) system proposed for the production of electric energy in rural Togo is very economical. The electricity produced by the proposed system under various climate condition is always less than 0.21 USD/kWh with a capacity shortage of about 0.0999%, economical than the electricity produced by the largest thermal power plant of the country (ContourGlobal) which electricity costs 0.3 USD/kWh. The results shows that the proposed system can contribute in a sustainable way to the improvement of the economic and social conditions of the inhabitants of rural areas.