Concentrated Solar Power and Photovoltaic Systems: A New Approach to Boost Sustainable Energy for All (Se4all) in Rwanda

Abstract

The energy sector of today’s Rwanda has made a remarkable growth to some extent in recent years. Although Rwanda has natural energy resources (e.g., hydro, solar, and methane gas, etc.), the country currently has an installed electricity generation capacity of only 226.7 MW from its 45 power plants for a population of about 13 million in 2021. The current national rate of electrification in Rwanda is estimated to 54.5% (i.e.; 39.7% grid-connected and 14.8% off-grid connected systems). This clearly demonstrates that having access to electricity is still a challenge to numerous people not to mention some blackout-related problems. With the ambition of having electricity for all, concentrated solar power (CSP) and photovoltaic (PV) systems are regarded as solutions to the lack of electricity. The production of CSP has still not been seriously considered in Rwanda, even though the technology has attracted significant global attention. Heavy usage of conventional power has led to the depletion of fossil fuels. At the same time, it has highlighted its unfriendly relationship with the environment because of carbon dioxide (CO2) emission, which is a major cause of global warming. Solar power is another source of electricity that has the potential to generate electricity in Rwanda. Firstly, this paper summarizes the present status of CSP and PV systems in Rwanda. Secondly, we conducted a technoeconomic analysis for CSP and PV systems by considering their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT). The input data of the SWOT analysis were obtained from relevant shareholders from the government, power producers, minigrid, off-grid, and private companies in Rwanda. Lastly, the technical and economical feasibilities of CSP and PV microgrid systems in off-grid areas of Rwanda were conducted using the system advisor model (SAM). The simulation results indicate that the off-grid PV microgrid system for the rural community is the most cost-effective because of its low net present cost (NPC). According to the past literature, the outcomes of this paper through the SWOT analyses and the results obtained from the SAM model, both the CSP and PV systems could undoubtedly play a vital role in Rwanda’s rural electrification. In fact, PV systems are strongly recommended in Rwanda because they are rapid and cost-effective ways to provide utility-scale electricity for off-grid modern energy services to the millions of people who lack electricity access.

Characterization of Sunshine Duration in Western Equatorial Africa: In Situ Measurements versus SARAH-2 Satellite Estimates

“…Global horizontal irradiance (GHI), which includes both DNI and diffuse horizontal irradiance, is the key value to estimate the final energy yield of a PV project (e.g., Neher et al 2020). Likewise, DNI is the key value to estimate the final energy yield of a CSP project (Blanc et al 2014;Hagumimana et al 2021). Because SDU in this study is calculated from satellite-derived SARAH-2.1 DNI, biases in SDU over WEA point to some extent toward biases in DNI that may result in uncertainty in the power output of the plant and endanger its financial feasibility (or bankability; Polo et al 2016).…”

“…In the energy field, the seventh goal of the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations (https://sdgs.un.org/goals), which aims at ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all by 2030, implies a shift away from fossil-fuel-based sources toward renewable energy sources (e.g., Gielen et al 2019). Both photovoltaic (PV) and concentrated solar power (CSP) systems rely on solar radiation measures and estimates and would be promising solutions for sustainable power production (Neher et al 2020;Hagumimana et al 2021), especially in sub-Saharan Africa where more than one-half of the people still lack access to electricity (e.g., Quansah et al 2016).…”

A review of renewable off-grid mini-grids in Sub-Saharan Africa

“…When there is no electricity supply, most households in rural communities depend on kerosene lamps and devices powered by dry cell batteries for lighting purposes (Wagner et al, 2021). The Kenyan government has made commitments toward ensuring that access to universal energy in rural locations is achieved by 2022; the government accepts the fact that it is important that the use of alternative energy be encouraged in locations with dispersed patterns of settlements requiring huge investments in building infrastructure and connection to the national grid (Hagumimana et al, 2021). The option of using solar energy as a means of generating alternative energy is very prominent as insolation in Kenya occurs all year round.…”

“…Kenya has now become a leading market for off-grid solar products in Africa due to support from favorable government policies and key stakeholders. During there was an increase in the of solar lanterns by over 200% (Hagumimana et al, 2021). Between January and June 2018, Kenya witnessed sale of 4.7 million high-powered solar products, almost 10 million people 20% of Kenya's population) high-powered solar products to meet their basic electricity (Antonanzas-Torres et al, 2021c).…”

Wind Energy Resource Utilization: A Review of Its Necessity, Interception Technology and Implementation Challenges

“…The amount of solar radiation that reaches any given location is dependent on several factors like geographic location, time of day, season, landscape and local weather" [19]. A device used to harness this solar energy for electricity generation is called a Photovoltaic cell (PV) made mainly from semiconducting materials and recent technology make use of Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) [20]. When the solar panel is exposed to the sun, it can trap or harness both direct, indirect and diffuse radiation.…”