A PHOTOVOLTAIC SOLAR-HYDROGEN POWER-PLANT FOR RURAL ELECTRIFICATION IN INDIA .1. A GENERAL SURVEY OF TECHNOLOGIES APPLICABLE WITHIN THE SOLAR-HYDROGEN CONCEPT

The utilization of solar energy is a major option to satisfy the energ y needs of the future. This article (Part 1) is a general survey of th e technologies which it is possible to apply within the so-called sola r-hydrogen concept. This report illustrates several routes to convert solar energy to electricity and techniques to store electricity. The m ain objective is to estimate the costs for erection and operation of a solar-hydrogen power plant design in a near and long perspective, i.e . the years 1995 and 2010. The proposed plant is called the photovolta ic solar-hydrogen power plant (PVSHPP) and is hypothetically located i n India for rural electrification. The PVSHPP is divided into two part s: the photovoltaic (PV) system, comprising photovoltaic generator, po wer conditioning, etc., and the storage system, comprising advanced el ectrolyser, pressurised gas storage, alkaline fuel cell, etc. The tota l investment and cost of electricity are estimated for both the PV sys tem and the whole PVSHPP. A PV system with a capacity of around 3.5 MW peak power requires a total investment of about $ (US) 13 million for the year 1995 and $ (US) 5.2 million for the year 2010. This could be cost competitive around the beginning of next century at $ (US) 0.07 kWh-1 at an interest rate of 8% for the year 2010. The PVSHPP has a po wer capacity of 0.5 MW and will require a total investment of around $ (US) 19 million for the year 1995 and $ (US) 11 million for the year 2010. The cost of electricity comes out as $ (US) 0.27 kWh-1 with an i nterest rate of 8% for the year 2010.