Feasibility study of a wind-photovoltaic hybrid power generation system for a remote area in the extreme south of Algeria

The electricity supply for the large region of southern Algeria is generated by diesel power, which has an enormous technical and environmental impact. The alternative to this is to use renewable energy sources and to take advantage of the high potential of solar photovoltaic and wind energy. The average daily solar radiation in this region is equal to 7.82 kWh/m(2)/day and the wind reaches a speed between 5 and 11 m/s. In this paper, we proceed to evaluate the technical and economic feasibility of using a hybrid generation system to satisfy the electricity demand for Timiaouine town, which is located in the extreme southwestern part of Algeria. Timiaouine, with more than 200 families, is not connected to the power grid. The feasibility of various configurations of renewable power generation was evaluated. The optimization results predict that 100% of the electricity demand could be supplied to the town by using a hybrid configuration composed of a wind energy system, a solar PV system and a diesel generator used as a backup system. The cost of electricity generation with this system was estimated at 0.176 US$/kWh. Carbon emissions to the atmosphere could approximately be reduced by 593.125 tons/year. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.