Energy saving analysis of a 16kWp grid connected photovoltaic (PV) system at Green Energy Research Centre (GERC), UiTM Shah Alam

This paper presents analysis of energy saving made by 16kWp grid connected photovoltaic (PV) system at Green Energy Research Centre (GERC), UiTM Shah Alam. The study is based on data collected from the PV system from May 2012 until April 2013. The data consists of solar irradiance, ambient and module temperature and output power of the PV system. The research investigates the effect of the PV system on the GERC building's daily load curve and maximum demand using the concept of residual load. The energy saving based on TNB tariff is compared with the revenue if the energy from the PV system would be sold to national grid at the FiT tariff. The CO2 emission avoidance provided by the PV system is also calculated. Analysis shows that there were strong correlation between the solar irradiance, ambient temperature and module temperature with the energy from the PV The energy from the PV reduced the daily energy consumption by 28.34% during the weekday. Total energy saving by the PV over the duration considered was 20,679.28kWh and this saved RM9,827 of electricity bill. On the other hand, if the energy from the PV would be sold to the utility grid, the expected payback period on the investment is 11 year.