Performance Analysis of Bukuzindu Hybrid Power Plant in Kalangala District of Uganda

Abstract

Uganda has many isolated communities that are not connected to the national grid and most of such communities are Islands. Most of these communities meet their electricity demand through stand-alone diesel generators and solar rooftop installations. This study presents the performance analysis of a 1.6 MWP Bukuzindu Hybrid PV/Diesel Power plant in Kalangala Islands on Lake Victoria in Uganda. The performance parameters of the PV component selected are those that mainly indicate the suitability of a site for solar power production. The PV component was simulated using PVsyst software with weather data, inverter and PV generator specifications as inputs. Using normalised values, a brief comparison with power plants across the globe was made to assess the relative performance of the power plant. The overall performance of the power plant was evaluated on annual basis over a period of five years from January 2015 to December 2019. The annual daily average solar global radiation, average ambient temperature, average wind speed, average precipitation and the annual average relative humidity at the selected site were 5.58 kWh/m2/day, 24:4 degrees Celsius, 2:84 m/s,4041 mm and 68.6% respectively. The annual average Performance ratio and Capacity factor were 76.5% and 18.84%, respectively. The annual average reference, array and final yield were 5.67, 4.78 and 4:39 h per day, respectively. The annual average daily capture and system losses were 0.82 and 0:32 h/d, respectively. The annual five-year average array, inverter and overall system efficiencies were 13.67%, 91.78% and 12.55%, respectively. The average annual percentage contribution of the PV to the total energy produced was 45.40 %. The average annual efficiencies for the diesel generators of capacities 500 kVA, 320 kVA and 200 kVA were 29.5%, 36.3% and 30.1% and the corresponding annual specific fuel consumption was 0.25, 0.33 and 0.35 litres per kW respectively.