Wind resource estimation and wind park design in El-Kef region, Tunisia

The aim of this study is to investigate the prospects of wind energy development in the El-Kef governorate, a north-western region of Tunisia. This work falls within the framework of a 15 MW wind farm project, undertaken by the local cement factory in order to cover a part of its energy needs. The collected data were analyzed and processed using the Weibull statistical method. The results of these analyses are used to estimate the wind power potential in the region and select the best fitted wind turbines to the site characteristics. Then, a wind farm micro-siting is proposed using the Windstation and 3DEM softwares. Finally, annual energy production of the wind farm was calculated and the project economic feasibility was evaluated. The economic analysis is based on the life-cycle costing methodology and it aims to estimate wind projects viability and profitability in the region. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.