Financial Feasibility and Environmental Sustainability of Rooftop Solar PV in Chattogram: A Case Study on Residential, Commercial, and Industrial Buildings

Electricity is one of the most essential aspects of economic development. This research aims to analyze the financial feasibility and environmental sustainability of rooftop-mounted solar PV for Chattogram City. Chattogram is a suitable candidate for solar PV with annual horizontal solar irradiation of 4.7 kWh/m2/day to 4.9 kWh/m2/day, which can be utilized to diminish the energy crisis and provide sustainability to energy production. We calculated the total and effective rooftop areas for residential, commercial, and industrial buildings using QGIS and AutoCAD to determine feasibility. The potential for solar PV energy generation on these rooftops was evaluated using RETScreen software. Economic parameters, including net present value, payback period, internal rate of return, GHG reduction cost, and benefit-cost ratio, were considered as performance indicators. The benefit-cost ratio and debt service coverage ratio for all three cases exceeded 1, indicating economic viability. Consequently, the proposed projects demonstrate overall feasibility.