Optimal On-Grid Hybrid AC/DC Microgrid for a Small Village in Muzaffargarh District, Pakistan

The socio-economic development of our rural areas is mainly affected by the shortage of electricity that is carried out in these remote areas. This situation can be readily mitigated by utilizing renewable energy resources present in these areas so that a continuous supply of energy is maintained. In this study, a combined hydro and Solar renewable energy system is proposed for a small village in Muzaffargarh District at Muzaffargarh-Garhmor road near the TP-Link canal, Pakistan. A combined micro-hydro and solar system is proposed that is capable of meeting the energy requirements in this specific village by utilizing the existing energy resources available. Moreover, the continuous supply of electrical energy is ensured by integrating this Hybrid Energy System (HES) with the local area grid station. The proposed system along with satisfactorily fulfilling the energy demands of this area ensured the cheap production of electricity at the rate of 0.0438 $/kWh. The system efficiency can be easily judged by the fact that the proposed system in this study is capable of generating electricity even cheaper than the energy supplied by the grid.