Optimization of industrial hybrid renewable energy system using HOMER

Increasing energy requirements due to population growth, urbanization, and industrialization push to adopt energy resources that will not deplete. Pakistan is among the category of those under-developing countries that are facing an electricity shortfall of 6997 MW. Pakistan is an agricultural country and has diversified sources of biomass. The geological location of Pakistan around the Sun Belt reveals that the average solar irradiation is 5 kWh/m
²
/day. A case study has been done focused on a rice mill in Layyah city in Punjab province. The targeted renewable resources are rice husk (biomass) and solar energy to produce electricity. Homer Pro software is used for optimization and techno-economic analysis of the PV/Biomass hybrid systems. Eight configurations are designed against the off-grid and on-grid systems (four for each system). It is seen that the most feasible design, case-3 from the off-grid (PV-BM-DG-B) system of 300 kW configuration, shows the NPC, LCOE, and renewable penetration of 5.91 M$, 0.125 $/kWh and 99.8%, respectively, whereas, in on-grid system, case-6 (PV-BM-G) shows 3.51 M$, 0.0503 $/kWh and 97.9%, respectively. Environmental analysis reveals that these models would help in carbon emission reduction compared to grid.