Study and Design of 20kWp Grid-connected Solar PV system, Case study of Ambatolampy, Madagascar

Abstract

The demand for electrical energy in Madagascar has been on the increase since the country got its independence. This increase in power consumption has been due to population increase and national economic growth. The increase in demand without a matching increase in generation has resulted in perennial electrical power shortfall necessitating the JIRAMA, the National Electricity and Water Utility to resort to expensive fossil fuels for electrical power generation. This electricity shortfall has affected the industrial growth. If the problem is not addressed, future national growth projections may not be met. This research therefore, sought to explore available methods so as to develop a renewable method to mitigate electrical power generation shortage in the country using grid-connected SPV electricity generation. First of all, the main components in a grid connected SPV system are described. After that, climatic data at the site and several parameters such as available area, topography, environmental and social considerations, accessibility, grid connection, module soiling, water availability are assessed in order to identify the favourable location for the installation of the PV system. The site selected is in the location of Ambodiriana - Ambatolampy which meets all the requirements for the installation of a grid connected SPV system. Next, the design parameters such as mounting structure, module orientation, inter-row spacing are also evaluated. PVsyst is used as the simulation software to design, evaluate and to carry out a financial analysis of the designed photovoltaic system. Then, the system wiring, sizing of cables as well as the selection of fuses and circuit breakers suitable for installation are outlined. And finally, the maintenance and troubleshooting for the grid connected photovoltaic system are presented. The main results obtained for the design of 20kWp grid connected SPV system are: for optimum production, 92 PV modules (Suntech STP 240-20/Wd) and one central inverter (SMA, Sunny tripower 20000TLEE-JP) is needed. The annual energy produced by the SPV system is equal to 34,20 MWh/year with a LCOE of 486Ariary/kWh and payback time of 11.02 years which is less than the SPV system lifetime that makes the project profitable. The evaluation parameters for the designed SPV system are 79,73% of PR, 20.29% of CF and annual Yieldsp of 1549 kWh/kWp/year