ASSESSMENT OF ECONOMIC VIABILITY OF STAND-ALONE SOLAR-PV SYSTEM TO ELECTRIFY AGRI-FARMHOUSE: A CASE STUDY Mukta M. Bannur, Suresh H. Jangamshetti, Senior Member IEEE Research Scholar Department of Electrical & Electronics, Basaveshwar Engineering College, Bagalkot, Karnataka, India mukta_bannur@yahoo.com Department of Electrical & Electronics, Basaveshwar Engineering College, Bagalkot, Karnataka, India suresh.j@ieee.org ABSTRACT Availability of abundant solar energy and acute power shortage in Bijapur district draws attention to assess the economic viability of the stand-alone solar PV system. This paper presents a case study on economic viability assessment of solar PV system for an Agri-farmhouse located at Bijapur, North Karnataka, India. The economic viability of a solar PV system is carried out using life cycle cost computation based on solar radiation at seasonal tilt angle, the days of autonomy, battery replacements. The main objective of this study is to estimate the unit electric cost of solar PV system to electrify an Agri-farmhouse. It is found that estimated unit electric cost and payback period for 2-days of autonomy are highly reasonable economically viable for remote rural electrification in global perspective. KEY WORDS Solar PV system, PV sizing, battery sizing, tilt angle, life cycle cost, unit electric cost. 1. Introduction Bijapur district is one of the foremost agricultural regions of the North Karnataka, India. It is situated in Northern dry zone-III. It is also considered as economically backward region of North Karnataka, which requires alternative activities to be taken up to improve living standards of people [1]. The district experiences semi-arid climate with extreme summers and chilly winters. Incidence of drought occurs due to inadequate and erratic distribution of rainfall in space and time. Further, due to power crisis in the state, the rural areas have plunged into virtual darkness, poor voltage regulation and unscheduled load shedding scenario. Thus there is a need to develop reliable electrical energy sources in the district for productive uses and to raise the quality of life of people. This necessitates the promotion of solar PV energy based electricity generation. Bijapur district is the best recipient of solar energy due to its favourable location in the solar belt (11 0 31’ N to 18 0 45’ and 74 0 12’ E to 78 0 40’E). The climatic conditions in the region are highly suited for solar PV generation [2]. Thus, the stand-alone solar PV (SPV) system is considered as promising alternative energy source to justify the load profile of an Agri-farmhouse at a location near Bijapur. The SPV system is renewable energy based electricity generator. This system converts the sunlight directly into electricity by photovoltaic effect. The advantages of the electricity which is produced from sunlight are: silent with no pollution, no maintenance and no depletion of natural resources [3]. The PV array is the most expensive solar part of the SPV system [4]. The amount of generated electricity is site dependent. It depends mainly upon the module efficiency, solar radiation and ambient temperature [5]. An analytical method for optimum sizing of solar PV system has been discussed in [6], which is based on load fraction and all energy produced by the PV array passes into the battery capacity. In this discussion the system designing is done without considering the effect of battery replacements. In [7], a method for sizing of PV array and battery capacity is discussed. It is based on horizontal solar radiation and long term loss of load probability. However the performance of SPV system depends upon the optimum tilt angle. The proper selection of tilt angle for the PV array maximizes its output. Further, this selection minimizes the size of PV array and battery capacity [8]. A simple approach of optimising size of SPV system, based on life cycle cost, surplus and deficit of energy flow have been presented in [9]. However in most of the published methods, sizing of PV array and battery capacity are done without considering site specific data. The performance of SPV system is largely depends upon a number of factors; they are site related [10]. Hence there is a need for investigation to design a SPV system that can be viable from the viewpoint of both performance and cost. Considering these points, a SPV system design and economic analysis is done using site specific solar data and local economic parameters. The simple analytical method is used in sizing of the PV array and battery capacity for fixed load demand and days of autonomy. Here it is assumed that all energy produced by the PV array passes through the battery capacity. Proceedings of the IASTED International Conference Power and Energy Systems (AsiaPES 2013) April 10 - 12, 2013 Phuket, Thailand DOI: 10.2316/P.2013.800-107 64