Assessment of decentralized hybrid PV solar-diesel power system for applications in Northern part of Nigeria

• The option of using hybrid energy for electricity in northern Nigeria is examined.
• Hybrid systems exhibit lower cost of generation compared to only diesel generators.
• Investment in hybrid energy system can benefit group of small-scale business owners
• Cost of energy from the hybrid system was compared with that of the national grid.
• Effect of PV cost and interest rate on the optimal energy system is also presented.

The possibility of using hybrid energy system for electricity generation in rural and semi-urban areas in the Northern part of Nigeria was investigated in this study. The global solar radiation data and residential energy consumption in Jos, (in Plateau state) located on the latitude of 9° 52′ N and longitude of 8° 54′ E are used. Hybrid Optimization Model for Electric Renewable (HOMER) software has been employed to carry out the present study. At current diesel price of $1.1/L and annual mean global solar radiation of 6.00 kWh/m2/day, it was found that PV/Generator/Battery hybrid system is economically the most suitable option as a stand-alone electricity generating system in this location and other similar locations in the Northern part of Nigeria. The optimal simulation results indicate that the levelised cost of energy for this hybrid energy system varies between $0.348/kWh and $0.378/kWh depending on the interest rate. These costs are lower than the cost of using diesel generator only (without battery) which varies between $0.417 and $0.423 per kWh. It was further observed that there is a significant reduction in emissions of greenhouse gases if a hybrid energy system is used instead of only a generator based energy system. The effect of interest rate and cost of PV system on the optimal energy in this part of Nigeria was investigated and a comparison between the monthly cost of electricity using current tariff of grid connected and hybrid energy systems was also made.