Design of Hybrid Renewable Energy System for a Selected Location in Pakistan

The purpose of the current study is to constitute a structure for developing rural energy systems by evaluating the techno-economic viability of prospective hybrid energy systems (HES) for remote areas electrification like a hamlet in the district of Mastung, Pakistan. In Balochistan, the yearly direct mean radiation from the sun is between 7 to 7.5 kWh/m
²
/day. However, it is closer to 4.5 to 5 kWh/m
²
/day in rest of Pakistan. The overall potential for wind energy in Pakistan is 346 GW. Initially, extensive resource evaluation has been done in the current study. To meet the peak-load requirement, system size optimization and techno-economic viability are then carried out by utilizing the HOMER Pro software. The electricity produced by wind and solar sources has been divided among the total load in the best possible way. The outcomes of the techno-economic analysis depict that HES is capable of producing more than 10 MW of power. With an annual AC main load of 12.8 GWh, the hybrid system generates 18.1 GWh of overall electricity. Wind turbines generate 1.3 GWh/yr with a proportion of 10.5%, whereas PV systems generate 9.8 GWh/yr with a fraction of 76.7%. The energy cost linked with commercial and residential sectors is taken into account depending on peak load demand patterns. A hybrid system costs ∃16.5 million and has an energy cost that is levelized at ∃0.0719 per kWh.