Insertion of distributed photovoltaic generation in Brazil: A correlation analysis between socioeconomic and geographic aspects

Abstract

Brazil has relevant regional differences in social, economic, and geographical terms, and the technological development of each region is affected by the dynamics of this inequality. The objective of this paper is to measure the degree of relationship between socioeconomic and geographic variables, with the level of insertion of residential photovoltaic (PV) generation technology in each federative unit in Brazil. The variables selected for this study were: (1) Human development index; (2) residential expenditure on electricity; (3) number of PV companies; (4) PAYBACK; and (5) solar irradiation index, based on the Brazilian Solar Energy Atlas developed by the National Institute for Space Research (INPE) in 2006. Five hypotheses were established. The methodology used to test these hypotheses was through the statistical analysis of Pearson’s correlation coefficient. Based on the obtained results, it can be concluded that the solar irradiation index is not a significant variable in the insertion process of residential PV distributed generation around the country; and where the residential expenditure on electricity is higher, are also the places that had the smallest installed PV systems. This may help the perception of the importance of each of the variables to increase the use of PV energy in Brazil.