Techno-economic comparative analysis of solar photovoltaic power systems with and without storage systems in three different climatic regions, Ghana

The techno-economic potential of two different photovoltaic power plants (PPP) (i.e. PV-only and PV-Battery) systems under three different climatic conditions in Ghana were presented in this paper. The System Advisor Model was used to model a 20 MW PPP at Wa, Sunyani and Nsawam to assess their technical and economic performances. The research took into consideration monthly energy generation, capacity factor (CF), sensitivity analysis, tracking systems and some financial parameters. Results from the analysis shows that the PV-only and PV-Battery systems with fixed-axis tracking (FT) technology generated an annual energy of 31 GWh at Wa and 28 GWh at Sunyani and Nsawam in the first year. CF ranging from 16% to 18% were obtained for both systems with FT technology for all sites. However, the integration of tracking systems (i.e. single-axis (SA) and double-axis (DA)) increased the annual energy to between 36 and 43 GWh with corresponding increases in CF ranging between 21% and 25%. The LCOE also decreased from 8 to 10 (sic)/kWh for the FT system to 5-6 (sic)/kWh for both SA and DA systems. In general, the northern section (Wa) was identified as the best location for the development of large-scale PPP in Ghana.

Automated summary

The research presented the techno-economic potential of two different photovoltaic power plants systems in three different climatic conditions in Ghana. The integration of tracking systems increased the annual energy generation and capacity factor, with the northern section identified as the best location for large-scale PPP development in Ghana.