RENEWABLE ENERGY CONSIDERATIONS FOR THE BAHAMAS

Charvari Watson RahmingApplied MeteorologyNovember 10th 2015

Solar Panels – Andros HotelCredits: Bahamas Out Island Promotion Board

OBJECTIVES Assess the need for an alternative energy resource Analyze the breakdown of electrical utility market

and population in the Bahamas Discuss the viability of solar energy as an energy

resource of choice in the Bahamas Analyze the implementation of photo voltaic cells

and solar parks to the electrical utility market in the family islands, New Providence and Grand Bahama

Propose goals and potential action plan for implementation of solar power in the Bahamas

THE BAHAMAS AND ENERGY RESOURCES

Satellite image of the Bahamas: Courtesy of Rolling HarborResidential Power Line installation: Courtesy of the Seeley family

THE BAHAMAS ENERGY MARKET Imported oil products accounts for 99%

of total energy utilized for energy consumption 44% from heavy fuel 56% from automotive diesel oil

Two electrical utility companies Bahamas Electricity Corporation – 80% Grand Bahama Power company – 20%

BAHAMAS ENERGY DISTRIBUTION AND DEMAND

Distributed among 17 island grids Operates 30 diesel generating plants in

26 Island locations Capacity = 20MW or less

Energy demand in the Bahamas 7500 kWh per household per year on

average 664,588 MWh per year

MARKET SUMMARIES FOR ELECTRICAL PROVIDERS

Utility Companies

Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC)

Grand Bahama Electricity (GBE)

Totals

Plants 29 1 30Capacity (MW)

438 141 579

Peak Demand (MW)

359** 74 433

Percentage of Peak Demand / Capacity(%)

81.96 52.48 74.78** Projected Peak Demand By 2013; Represents all Islands Except Grand Bahama

NEED FOR ALTERNATE RENEWABLE RESOURCES Electrical energy produced comes almost

exclusively from fossil fuels Contributor to Green House gas emissions and Global

Warming Contributor to other air pollutant emissions

Electrical grids stressed due to heavy demands from growing market of consumers

High utility prices and fuel surcharge Increased usage of generators by private homes

and companies Monthly outages 4 times higher than other

Caribbean companies

RENEWABLE ENERGY SOLUTION

Photovoltaic Solar Park, Modi India: Courtesy of Reuters

ENERGY FROM THE SUN 170,000 terawatt hours of energy daily

about 2,850 times the energy required by people around the world.

Amount of energy released from sun in 40 minutes = energy that is consumed by the entire population of the planet in one year.

Amount of energy released from sun in 20 days = All the energy stored in Earth's reserves of coal, oil, and natural gas  

Currently harness about 1% of this energy

REVIEW OF PHOTOVOLTAIC TECHNOLOGY

Called solar cells Energy from photons from sun Direct transformation of solar radiation

energy into electrical energy Silicon (semi-conductor) or thin film

technology Energy transferred to electrons in solid Produces electric voltage through

movement of electrons

WORKING PRINCIPLE OF A PHOTOVOLTAIC CELL

Courtesy of: The Finest Solar Company, Berkshire England

Hypothesis - The Bahamas is able to viably utilize solar radiation for the generation of electrical power. The premise is supported by two variables: Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI) -  is the total

amount of shortwave radiation received from above by a surface horizontal to the ground. 

Technical potential - represents the achievable energy generation of a particular technology given system performance, topographic limitations, environmental, and land-use constraints

SOLAR ENERGY – A RENEWABLE ENERGY SOLUTION

Global Horizontal Irradiance= 5.3kWh/m2/day (less than region’s - 5.5 and higher) Based on latitude, seasonal and diurnal

cycle of the sun Technical potential = 58 MW/ 58000 kW

Average maximum output of a system, considering limitations

GHI AND TECHNICAL POTENTIAL OF SOLAR POWER

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF PHOTO VOLTAIC TECHNOLOGY

Manufacture Use of hazardous materials

Strong acids, trichloro-ethene and acetone used in cleaning semi conductor surface

Gallium arsenide, cadmium telluride in thin film PV cells Life-cycle greenhouse emissions from production

0.08 – 0.2 pounds of CO2 equivalent per KWh Operation

Land degradation Loss of habitat Water used for cooling

COST OF IMPLEMENTATION Solar power plants

$4950 – 11311 per kW 20 MW = $99 million Based on delivery system, solar multiple, storage

and capacity factors Building integrated solar panels

$8500 – 11000 for 4 kwp system

POTENTIAL SAVINGS  A 20 MW power station will therefore

consume about 5,000 litres an hour of fuel. 1321.8 gallons

Diesel fuel costs = $3.81 per gallon Total operating cost for 20 MW power station

1321.8 x24 x365 x 3.81 $44,115,868 / $44 million

Solar power station will pay itself off in 2.25 years.

POTENTIAL SAVINGS Cost of electricity per kWh

0 – 200 units = 10.95 cents per kilowatt hour

Bill = $400 a month $4800 a month

Price of PV system = $11,000 System will pay itself off in 2.29 years

CASE STUDY - TOKELAU

Tokelau natives response to BHP Billiton claim of coal being the answer to poverty: courtesy of 350.org

CASE STUDY - TOKELAU Island in the South Pacific Population – 1500 Received 7 million funding from New

Zealand for installations 100% powered by solar energy Resorts to coconut oil during cloudy

days Generates 150% of total demand for

island

TOKELAU – PAVING THE WAY FORWARD Serves as a model for island nations for the

use of hybrid micro-grids By switching to renewable energy:

reduced their reliance on imported fuels, kept money in the local economy, provided their residents with reliable power,

and lower their carbon emissions. serves as “test beds” for adoption of new

technologies and models of what can happen on a larger scale.

IMPLEMENTATION OF PHOTOVOLTAIC POWER GENERATION

There are three was in which PV power can be implemented (BEST Commission) Building Integrated Photovoltaic Cells

Confined to rooftops/ building facade Green Field Power Plants

Up to 8-9 hectares Solar Parks

Up to 100 hectares Will explore the implementation of each in Out

Islands, New Providence and Grand Bahama

POWERING THE OUT ISLANDS

Dock at Governor’s Harbour Eleuthera: Courtesy of Matt Long

THE OUT ISLANDS Accounts for approx. 15% of the Bahamian

population (Census 2010) Accounts for approx. 30% of BEC’s load Population ranges for each island is as high as

17,000 to as low as 100 persons As a result, demand on electrical grid is

relatively low Possibility of utilizing solar parks and green

fields to power the out islands 100% Reduces peak load percentage of BEC to 58%

UTILIZING SOLAR PARKS/ GREEN FIELDSAdvantages DisadvantagesClean Energy Land Mass

AvailabilityLow Maintenance ExpenseReduction of Diesel Plants/ Usage/ GH Gas Emissions

Inconsistent

Lower fuel Surcharge

Large Scale Environmental Impact

SITE SELECTIONS FOR GREEN FIELDS/ SOLAR PARKS

Small population Small load on electrical grid Available land Solar irradiance

INTRODUCTION OF SOLAR PARKS AND GREEN FIELDS TO THE OUT ISLANDS

Peak Load for New Providence = 254 Projected for Bahamas (BEC) = 359 Load for Out Island = 105 MW

Total Peak Load – Peak Load (NP) = Peak Load (OI)

359 – 254 = 105 MW 29.24% of BEC’s peak load

POPULATION USAGE FACTORS

248,948, 70%

51,756, 15%

52,954, 15%

Bahamas Population 2010 Census

New Prov-idenceGrand BahamaOut Islands

25459%74

17%

10524%

Peak Load Per Is-land (MW)

DEMAND IN LESS POPULATED OUT ISLANDS

Correlation of population to peak load = 0.988

Used calculated correlation to determine the peak load in the following islands

Can determine the ability of an island to fully convert to solar energy in the form of solar parks once peak demand does not exceed 58 MW Ensures efficiency of the system

BAHAMAS POPULATION AND PEAK LOAD CALCULATIONIsland Population (2010

census)Peak Load (MW)

Rum Cay 99 45.6Mayaguana 271 45.8Crooked Island 323 45.9Acklins 560 46.1Berry Islands 798 46.3San Salvador 930 46.4Spanish Wells 1537 46.9Harbour Island 1702 47.0Bimini 2008 47.3Andros 7386 51.8Eleuthera 7826 52.1Abaco 16692 59.8

APPLICATION OF SOLAR FIELDS 100 kwp blocks used Performance prediction (BEST) for FS-

275 module Thin film module Fixed Mounting Performance ratio = 86.7% Energy Produced = 185 MWh year

Approx 176% of capacity of the Out Islands

TABLE SHOWING POTENTIAL ANNUAL YIELD FOR 9 ISLANDS

Island

Available Land for open field power plant (ha)

Technical Capacity (MW)

Structural capacity (MW)

Annual Yield (MWh/a)

Abaco 9357 4678 30.48 52730Acklins-Crooked Island 3 2 1.04 1799Andros 1570 785 7.32 12664Eleuthera 1306 653 13.96 24151Exuma Cays 109 54 10.67 18459Grand Bahama 185 92 92.35 159758Inagua 14 7 - -Mayaguana 2 1 0.31 536New Providence 1206 603 315.20 545296

Technical Capacity: land = 1MW: 2 hectares

LIMITATIONS AND SOLUTIONS Land availability

1 hectare required for 1 MW of power i.e. 20 MW = 20 hectares = 50 acres

Can pose a problem for islands with larger populations and limited available land space

Resolution: Can link solar parks to existing grid to compensate for shortages

Resolution: Integrate biaxial tracking system instead of single axis tracking on smaller islands

Resolution: Introduce building integrated systems to reduce the use of land space

LIMITATIONS AND SOLUTIONS CONTD. Area related risk

Equipment may be at risk for damages, especially during the hurricane season

Resolution: to minimize damages, reinforcements such as steel beam foundation and reinforcement may be used

POWERING THE URBANIZED AREAS

Freeport Harbour, Freeport Grand Bahama: Courtesy of the_bahamas.net

DEMAND IN NEW PROVIDENCE AND GRAND BAHAMA

Accounts for 85% of the population of the Bahamas (Population Census 2010)

Heavy demand, due to growing population, tourist population arrivals and industrial activity

Insufficient space and available power to construct small scale green fields

Frequent blackouts as a result of capacity overload

UTILIZING PHOTOVOLTAIC CELLS Rooftops of facades of buildings can be

outfitted with photovoltaic cells Can be connected to existing grid (grid tied) Already implemented by hotels, businesses

and home owners Negligible operational environmental impact Vendors exist – standard 4kwp system

price ranges between $8500 and $11,000

UTILIZING PHOTOVOLTAIC CELLS CONTD. Success and electricity generation heavily

dependent on sunshine climatic data Examples: The United Kingdom

Scotland 3.61 hours of average daily sunshine 4kwp system can generate 3200 kwh a year

Northern Ireland 3.45 hours of average daily sunshine 4kwp system can generate 3,400 kwh a year.

South England 4.42 hours of average daily sunshine 4kwp system can generate 3800 kwh a year

CALCULATING POWER GENERATED USING SUNSHINE CLIMATE DATA

Climate data of Grand Bahama and New Providence obtained

Correlation calculated using UK values for average daily sunshine and power generated from 4kwp systems

Calculation of power generated by 4kwp system in both New Providence and Grand Bahama

CLIMATE DATA – AVERAGE SUNSHINE DATA 1981-2010

Month

Average Daily Sunshine Freeport (hours)

Average Daily Sunshine New Providence (hours)

Jan 7 7.3Feb 7.6 8Mar 8.1 8.4Apr 9.1 9.4May 9.1 9Jun 7.8 7.9Jul 8.3 8.5Aug 8.1 8.4Sep 7 7.4Oct 7.6 7.6Nov 7.2 7.3Dec 6.7 6.8

CLIMATE DATA – GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATION

Jan Mar May Jul Sep

Nov0123456789

10

Climat Data For Sunshine 1981-2010

Average Daily Sunshine Freeport (hoursAverage Daily Sunshine New Providence (hours)H

ours

CALCULATIONS Correlation = 0.88 Average sunlight hours: energy generated

New Providence; 7.975: 5619.32 kwh per annum Grand Bahama; 7.700: 5476.6 kwh per annum

Average energy consumption per capita = 7500 kwh per annum

664,588 MWh per year (entire Bahamas) Building integrated PV modules

Up to 10 Kwh – Residential Homes (up to 2 –4 kWp systems) Up to 1 Mwh – Large commercial/public building (up to 200 4-

kwp systems)

LIMITATIONS AND SOLUTIONS Monetary expenses for initial purchase and installation

Resolution: governmental subsidies ie. reduction of tariffs for import, feed in tariffs at government level, duty free items, compensation for excess power to feed the grid (offsets demand)

Receive finding from international bodies Insufficient power from cells in larger homes and

businesses and due to limited sunshine in less sunny months. (below average) Resolution: Compensate by educating public on

conservation techniques, invest in larger system, access power into grid

GOALS AND ACTION PLANS

China’s largest concentrated solar power plant: Courtesy of EVWind

GOALS Reduce the consumption of fossil fuels to

65% by the year 2030 Construct solar parks with capacity of 20MW

or less, removing them from the electrical grid.

Increase accessibility and affordability of photo voltaic cells to the general public

Increase incentives and awareness of the benefits of solar power to the general public

ACTION PLAN Replace Out Island power plants with photo voltaic

plants Out Fit government buildings with photo voltaic cells Education of the public in utilizing energy efficient

appliances Grant incentives for homeowners to purchase and

outfit homes with solar panels Lower the import duty on photo voltaic cells Introduce subsidies geared towards the solar power

industry

REFERENCES Department of Statistics; “PERCENTAGE DISTRIBUTION OF POPULATION BY ISLAND 2000 AND 2010 CENSUSES”. The

Bahamas Government; May 2011. http://statistics.bahamas.gov.bs/download/082103200.pdf(Accessed 10/25/15)

Energy Savings Plus; Solar Panels,” Last updated, September 2014 http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/domestic/solar-panels(Accessed 10/27/2015)

Guevara-Stone, L. An Island (Tokelau) Powered 100% By Solar Energy, The Rocky Mountain institute. October 6th, 2013 http://cleantechnica.com/2013/10/06/an-island-tokelau-powered-100-by-solar-energy/(Accessed 10/30/2015)

Hartnell, Neil; “Bahamas Fails To Enact 27% Energy Demand Cut Plan“ The Tribune, Nassau Bahamas; December 11th , 201http://www.tribune242.com/news/2013/dec/11/bahamas-fails-enact-27-energy-demand-cut-plan/(Accessed 10/25/15)

Maura, S.; Climatic Data for annual average Sunshine by Month. 1981-2010, Bahamas Department of Meteorology; Date retrieved October 24th, 2015

Ministry of the Environment and Housing; Ministry of Works and Urban Development: “The Bahamas National Energy Policy 2013-2033” http://www.thebahamasweekly.com/uploads/16/energypolicy.pdf(Accessed 10/21/15)

Organization of American States; National Renewable Energy Laboratory, “Energy Policy and Analysis in the Caribbean 2010-2011”. May 2012 http://www.ecpamericas.org/data/files/Initiatives/lccc_caribbean/LCCC_Report_Final_May2012.pdf(Accessed 10/25/15)

Public Interest Energy Research Program (PIER) “Potential Health and Environmental Impacts Associated With the Manufacture and Use of Photovoltaic Cells” November 2003, http://www.energy.ca.gov/reports/500-04-053.PDF(Accessed 10/25/15)

Solar Tribune; “4000 Watt Solar kits,”.http://solartribune.com/solar-kits/4000-watt/(Accessed 10/31/15)

The BEST Commission; Promoting Sustainable Energy in the Bahamas; The Bahamas Government; September 2010, http://www.best.bs/webdocs/1016_finalreport.pdf(Accessed 10/25/15)

The union of concerned scientists;. “Environmental Impacts of Solar Power” Last Revised: March 5th, 2013 www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/our-energy-choices/renewable-energy/environmental-impacts-solar-power.htmlThink Global Green Organization; Solar Power, http://www.thinkglobalgreen.org/solar.htmlAccessed 10/31/15)