Hybrid solar micro gas-turbines are a promising technology for supplying controllable low-carbon electricity in off-grid regions. A thermoeconomic model of three different hybrid micro gas-turbine power plant layouts has been developed, allowing their environmental and economic performance to be analyzed. In terms of receiver design, it was shown that the pressure drop is a key criterion. However, for recuperated layouts, the combined pressure drop of the recuperator and receiver is more important. In terms of both electricity costs and carbon emissions, the internally-fired recuperated micro gasturbine was shown to be the most promising solution of the three configurations evaluated. Compared to competing diesel generators, the electricity costs from hybrid solar units are between 10% and 43% lower, while specific CO 2 emissions are reduced by 20-35%. Downloaded From: http://gasturbinespower.asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/ on 05/24/2015 Terms of Use: http://asme.org/terms