Design and Analysis of a 1MW Grid-Connected
Solar PV System in Ghana
RESEARCH PAPER

No. 27

ATPS (2013): Design and Analysis of a 1MW Grid-Connected Solar PV System in Ghana. ATPS Research Paper No. 27

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ATPS (2013): Design and Analysis of a 1MW Grid-Connected Solar PV System in Ghana. ATPS Research Paper No. 27

2Design and Analysis of a 1MW Grid-Connected
Solar PV System in Ghana

Ebenezer Nyarko Kumi
The Energy Center
Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology
Kumasi-Ghana
Abeeku Brew-Hammond
The Energy Center
Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology
Kumasi-Ghana

ATPS (2013): Design and Analysis of a 1MW Grid-Connected Solar PV System in Ghana. ATPS Research Paper No. 27

3This paper should be cited as:
African Technology Policy Studies Network, ATPS 2013: Design and Analysis of a 1MW
Grid-Connected Solar PV System in Ghana [Ebenezer Nyarko Kumi, Abeeku BrewHammond], ATPS RESEARCH PAPER No. 27© 2013Published by the African Technology Policy Studies Network

ISBN: 978-9966-030-63-71-9

ATPS (2013): Design and Analysis of a 1MW Grid-Connected Solar PV System in Ghana. ATPS Research Paper No. 27

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Table of Contents
Acknowledgements						

6Abstract								

7

1Introduction						

8

2Literature Review						

10

3Methodology						

12

4Results and Findings					

13

5Conclusion and Recommendations				18

References							

19ATPS (2013): Design and Analysis of a 1MW Grid-Connected Solar PV System in Ghana. ATPS Research Paper No. 27

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Acknowledgement
This report was produced as part of the implementation of the African Technology Policy
Studies Network (ATPS) Phase VI Strategic Plan, 2008 – 2012 funded by ATPS Donors
including the Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken (DGIS) the Netherlands, amongst others.
The authors hereby thank the ATPS for the financial and technical support during theimplementation of the program. The Authors specially thank Prof. Kevin Chika Urama, the
ATPS Executive Director for his visionary leadership as Program Director; Prof. Atieno
Ndede-Amadi, Program Coordinator; Dr. Nicholas Ozor, Senior Research Officer, ATPS;
Mr. Ernest Nti Acheampong, ATPS Research Officer and the ATPS Team for the technicalsupport during the research process.

ATPS (2013): Design and Analysis of a 1MW Grid-Connected Solar PV System in Ghana. ATPS Research Paper No. 27

6Abstract
This study aims at developing a standard procedure for the design of large-scale institutional
grid-connected solar Photovoltaic (PV) systems using the roofs of buildings and car parks. A
prefeasibility study of renewable energy projects including grid-connected solar PV systems
was conducted using RETScreen software, designed by Natural Resources Canada andused for. An extensive literature review of solar PV systems with a special focus on gridconnected systems was conducted after which the procedure for the design of institutionallarge-scale grid connected solar PV systems was developed. The developed procedure
was used in the design of a 1 Megawatt (MW) grid-connected solar PV system for KNUSTGhana. The performance of the system was simulated using RETScreen Clean Energy
Project Analysis software and the results analysed. The analyses of the simulation results
show that the project is socially beneficial to the community, in this case the university, withan annual energy yield of about 1,159 Megawatt hour (MWh) which is about 12% of Kwame
Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST’s) annual electricity consumption.
The process of electricity generation from solar PV saves about 792 tonnes of CO2. The yieldfactor, performance ratio and capacity factor were other technical performance parametersconsidered. Under the prevailing tariff conditions in the country, the project yields a very large
negative net present value (NPV) and a simple payback period of about 50 years. These
parameters, however, improve when higher feed-in tariffs, grants and capital subsidies are
introduced into the simulation.

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71. Introduction
There is a major challenge of providing reliable and continuous energy supply in Ghana, which
has resulted in many power crises in the country over the past decade. Lessons from overreliance on hydro-electric power generation have led the country to explore alternative formsof energy generation to meet the aspirations for full electrification. Solar power, one of themany renewable energy options, provides attractive benefits like environmental protection,
job creation, and global potential for technology transfer and innovation. Ghana, and for thatmatter, the African continent in general, has the greatest potential for solar power projects
with a greater part of the continent receiving about 300W/m2 of solar radiation annually.
Grid-connected solar Photovoltaic (PV) systems employ the direct conversion of sunlight into
electricity which is fed directly into the electricity grid without storage in batteries. This option,
like many other renewable energy options, is generally carbon free or carbon neutral and assuch does not emit greenhouse gases during its operation, since global warming and climatechange are mostly caused by the release of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into
the atmosphere.
A look at the world’s map of mean solar radiations reveal that, Africa as a continent receives
the highest amounts of solar radiation between 300 and 350 W/m2 annually (Brew-Hammondet al., 2008). This makes the African continent, of which Ghana is a part, exceptionallysuitable for solar energy projects. In spite of this huge potential, Africa still trails the rest of
the world in terms of solar energy applications and energy services in general, thus referred
to globally as the Dark Continent. The design and analysis of a 1MW grid-connected solar
PV system for Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana, willseek to reduce the amount of work involved in designing grid-connected solar PV systems,by coming out with a set of standard procedures that will make it easy for institutions to adopt.
In the long run, it will help promote the use of grid-connected solar PV systems.
1.1 Problem statement
Most African countries are characterised by very poor access to electricity. The International
Energy Agency in 2010 estimated Africa’s electrification rate at 25%, the lowest on the globe.
Yet, Africa receives the highest amount of solar radiation, which happens to be the mostabundant source of energy on the globe. In spite of the huge solar radiation potential of Africa,
the continent still trails the developed world when it comes to solar applications including
grid-connected solar. It is for this reason that this project is being initiated to contribute to thedevelopment of grid-connected solar PV systems on the continent.
1.2 Objectives
The main objective of the project is to design a One Megawatt (MW) grid-connected solar
photovoltaic system for KNUST-Ghana using roofs of buildings and car parks and to analyze
its technical and financial performance using simulation software packages.
The specific objectives are as follows:• To develop a standard procedure for the development of institutional large scale gridconnected solar PV systems. This would include; an assessment of area required;assessing the suitability of roofs of buildings and car parks for orientation, pitch, shading
effects, etc.
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•
•

To test the developed procedure in the design of a 1MW grid-connected solar PV system
in KNUST-Ghana.
To simulate the performance of the 1MW grid-connected solar PV system using suitablesoftware packages and conducting technical as well as financial analyses based on thesoftware simulation results.

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92. Literature Review
Photovoltaic systems are solar energy supply systems that convert sunlight directly toelectricity. The chief component of a PV system is the solar panel which is formed by putting
together several PV cells. Putting together several PV cells forms a PV module; several
modules form arrays and several arrays form panels. The modular nature of PV cells makes
it possible for them to be used for a wide range of power applications ranging from a few
milliwatts in wrist watches and scientific calculators to several megawatts in central power
stations. Solar cells are usually made of semiconductor materials such as silicon, gallium
arsenide, cadmium telluride or copper indium diselenide (DGS, 2008).
Solar cells come in two major forms based on the nature of the material used in theirproduction. The two main forms are crystalline solar cells and thin film solar cells. Crystalline
solar cells, so far, have the highest conversion efficiencies when it comes to photovoltaic cells
and the main types are monocrystalline and polycrystalline cells (DGS, 2008). Thin film cells,
although less efficient than crystalline silicon, offer greater promise for large-scale power
generation because of ease of mass-production and lower materials cost. The commonest
example of thin film cells is the amorphous silicon cell (DGS, 2008).Photovoltaic systems
can be grouped into two main groups; namely off-grid systems and grid-connected systems
Solar Server (2010).
Solar PV is currently the fastest growing power generation technology in the world with about
38,584 megawatt (MW) capacity installed in the year 2010. In all, Europe alone contributes
about 70% of the total installed capacity of PV systems with North America, Japan, China
and Australia following in that order (EPIA et al 2010). Grid-connected systems make up the
majority of these figures and this is as a result of favourable incentives such as feed-in tariff
schemes, tax rebates and investment subsidies (EPIA et al, 2010; REN21, 2011).
The solar PV industry has also seen tremendous improvement in cell efficiencies for thevarious technologies available on commercial scale. This improvement in technology andthe continuous growth of the PV market has led to drastic reduction in the cost of solar PV
systems on the global market (EPIA et al, 2010).
The situation on the African continent is, however, not encouraging, with Africa contributing
less than 1% of the world’s installed solar PV systems (installed capacity of 163MW as at
the end of 2010), in spite of the huge solar energy potential available to the continent (BrewHammond et al., 2008). This is as a result of the lack of policy instruments that help promoterenewable energy technologies in general and also the very high initial capital involved indeveloping solar PV systems. Grid-connected solar PV systems are not that popular in Africa
since most solar PV applications are employed in off-grid rural electrification projects to ruralcommunities (for lighting, educational and health applications) that are far from the national
grid (EPIA et al, 2010).
The situation in Ghana is not so different from the rest of the Africa continent with most solar
PV systems employed in off-grid rural electrification projects. The Energy Commission of
Ghana is, however, leading efforts to promote grid-connected solar PV in the country by
partly sponsoring individuals and institutions to install grid connected solar PV and wind
ATPS (2013): Design and Analysis of a 1MW Grid-Connected Solar PV System in Ghana. ATPS Research Paper No. 27

10energy systems with capacities not less than 75 Kilowatt peak (KWp). The commission is
also spearheading development of renewable energy law for the country which will provide
incentives for the development of renewable energy technologies in the country including
grid-connected solar PV. The Energy Commission and KNUST have each installed 4KWp
grid-connected solar PV systems donated by the German state of North Rhine Westphalia
to aid in research into grid-connected solar PV systems (MoE, 2010; Energy Commission,2011).
2.1 Off-Grid Systems
Off-grid PV systems, as the name implies, are systems that are not connected to the public
electricity grid. These systems require an energy storage system for the energy generated
because the energy generated is not usually required at the same time as it is generated(DGS, 2008). In other words, solar energy is available during the day, but the lights in astand-alone solar lighting system are used at night so the solar energy generated during the
day must be stored for use at night. They are mostly used in areas where it is not possible
to install an electricity supply from the main utility grid, or where this is not cost-effective ordesirable. They are therefore preferable for developing countries where vast areas are still
frequently not supplied by an electrical grid. Off-grid systems are usually employed in thefollowing applications; consumer applications such as watches and scientific calculators,
industrial applications such as telecommunications and traffic signs and remote habitations
such as solar home systems and water pumping applications.
A typical off-grid system comprises the following main components:• Solar PV Modules: these convert sunlight directly to electricity.
• Charge Controllers: manage the charging and discharging of the batteries in order tomaximize their lifetimes and minimize operational problems• Battery Or Battery Bank: Stores the energy generated by the PV modules• Inverter: converts the DC current generated by the solar PV modules to AC current for
AC consumer load (DGS, 2008).
2.2 Grid-Connected PV Systems
Grid-connected PV systems are systems connected to a large independent grid usually
the public electricity grid and feed power directly into the grid. These systems are usuallyemployed in both decentralised grid-connected PV applications and centralized gridconnected PV applications (DGS, 2008). Decentralised grid-connected PV applications
include rooftop PV generators, where the PV systems are mounted on rooftops of buildings
and building integrated system in which the PV systems are incorporated into the building(DGS, 2008). In the case of residential or building mounted grid connected PV systems, theelectricity demand of the building is met by the PV system and the excess is fed into the grid;
their capacities are usually in the lower range of kilowatts (DGS, 2008).
A typical grid-connected PV system comprises the following components:• Solar PV Modules: these convert sunlight directly to electricity.
• Inverter: converts the DC current generated by the solar PV modules to AC current for
the utility grid.
• Main disconnect/isolator Switch• Utility Grid
Central grid-connected PV applications have capacities ranging from the higher kilowatts tothe megawatt range (DGS, 2008).

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113. Methodology
A prefeasibility study for the 1 MW grid-connected solar photovoltaic systems was conducted.
It also included a greenhouse gas emissions analysis. The prefeasibility study was undertaken
to identify the total estimated area required for the installation of the 1MW system as well as
the basic economics of the project including the simple payback period and net present value
for the project.
A zero-order draft procedure, which included the various steps required for the achievementof the project objectives, was prepared to aid in the project and was updated from time to time
until a standard procedure was developed which could be replicated in other institutions. The
zero-order draft procedure included steps such as solar resource assessment for KNUST, a
study of buildings and car parks to ascertain the total area available, as well as an assessmentof the structural properties of the roofs and their ability to carry the weight of the solar panels.
The structural analysis carried out on the selected buildings for the PV installations was donewith the help of structural engineers from the Civil Engineering Department-KNUST. The
results of roof assessments and the technical specifications of the solar PV systems led tothe designing of the layout of the system.
The performance of the system was then simulated using RETScreen Clean Energy Project
Analysis Software; a software developed by Natural Resources Canada to undertake
prefeasibility as well as full feasibility studies for most renewable energy projects. The
software, which comes with inbuilt solar radiation data for various locations including KNUSTGhana, as well as system specifications from various manufacturers, has the capability ofsimulating technical and financial performance of renewable energy systems over the entire
project life.

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124. Results and Findings
4.1 Solar Resource assessment
Solar resource assessment for the location was performed to determine the amount of solar
radiation reaching the location and at what orientation and inclination a solar device will
receive maximum radiation. Data used for this study was from the Solar and Wind Resource
Assessment (SWERA) report for Ghana, developed by the Mechanical Engineering
Department of KNUST for the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). This data
is from actual ground measurements of solar radiation using a solar radiation measuring
device. This data was compared to some satellite data from the American Space Agency(NASA) (used in the RETScreen Software), and also PVGIS-Helioclim developed by the
Joint Research Commission of the European Commission and is shown in Figure 1.
The daily horizontal solar irradiance for Kumasi (KNUST) chosen for this study was 4.30kWh/m2/day based on radiation data in the Solar and Wind Resource Assessment (SWERA)
database.

Figure 1: Comparison of solar radiation data from 3 different sources	
  For roof mounted systems, the maximum amount of radiation is limited by the properties of theroof such as pitch/slope and orientation which cannot be changed. Roofs in KNUST mostly
have slopes of about 15o, since the slopes are mostly to prevent rainwater from staying on
the roofs. Figure 2 shows the solar radiations at the different orientations (south, north, east
and west) for a 15o, angle of inclination. It can be observed from figure 2 that, south facing
roofs receive the highest amount of solar radiation for the specific location.
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Figure 2: Solar radiation at 15o, inclination and different orientations
4.2 Building roof assessment and solar system selection
The roof assessment revealed that the total amount south-facing roof space available on
the campus is about 9,434 m2 covering a total of about fifty five (55) faculty buildings on thecampus which are suitable for the installation of solar panels and accessories.
The selection of the components of the solar PV system was done with the help of catalogues
from various dealers both local and international. In all, polycrystalline silicon panels wereselected because their performance was very good and also they are moderately priced
compared to Monocrystalline (which have the highest performance but the most expensiveof the three) and amorphous silicon (which has the worst performance but the cheapest of
the three). The detailed specifications of the selected panels are shown in the table below:
Table 1 Specifications of selected panels
Nominal power

190W

Voltage at Nominal Power (Vmpp)

36.4V

Efficiency (ŋ)

14.1%

Current at Nominal Power (Impp)

5.22A

Area (A)1.31m2

Open Circuit Voltage (Voc)

45.2V

Cell typeMono-Si

Open Circuit Current (Ioc)

5.46A

Weight15.5kgNo of Cells

72

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4.3 Technical Performance
The international energy agency (IEA) Photovoltaic Power Systems Program outlines theparameters used to describe energy quantities for PV systems and their components. These
parameters include the total energy yield, the yield factor, the performance ratio and thecapacity factor and they help in the comparison of similar projects to determine which works
best. The total energy yield is the total amount of energy generated by the system and in thecase of grid-connected PV systems, the total amount of electricity that is injected into theutility grid. The result of the simulation shows that, the total energy to be generated by the
1MW grid-connected solar PV system is estimated at 1,159MWh/year. This is about 12% of
KNUST’s annual electricity consumption. Figure 3 shows the average monthly energy yieldfor the system.

Figure 3: Average monthly energy yield of the proposed 1MW PV system
Yield factor (YF) refers to the plant’s specific performance in net kWh delivered to the grid
per kW of installed nominal PV module power. This is also equivalent to the number of fullload hours for the plant.
The reference yield, Yr, is the ratio of the total irradiance reaching the surface of the PV array(in-plane irradiance) to the PV array’s reference irradiance (which is 1,000W/m2 for STC).
Performance ratio (PR) is defined as the actual amount of PV energy delivered to the gridin a given period, divided by the theoretical amount according to STC data of the modules.
Performance ratios of 70% and above are considered to be very good performing systems.
The Capacity factor of a power plant is the ratio of the actual output of a power plant over a
period of time and its potential output if it had operated at full nameplate capacity the entire
time. Table 2 gives a summary of the key results.
Table 2: Summary of the key technical results for the proposed 1MW system
Performance at the inverter output
Output

Unit

Total

Energy Yield

MWh/year

1,159

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Yield Factor

kWh/Kwp/year

1,163

Reference Yield

hours

1,565

Performance Ratio

%

74.30

Capacity factor

%

13.2

4.4 Economic Analysis
The economic analysis of the 1MW grid-connected solar PV system was carried out toassess the cost and intended benefits of the project. It was carried out with the help of
RETScreen software. The software is easy to use and has the capability of simulating thenet present value and simple payback period as well as estimating the greenhouse gas
saving potential of renewable energy projects over their entire operational life. The NPV
and simple payback period will help determine how feasible the project will be. The total
investment cost comprises the following components; module, inverter, cables, mounting
structures, engineering and project management, labour and miscellaneous costs. The
costs of the various solar PV components used for this study were international prices takenfrom renowned online solar PV research firms such as Solar buzz (solar market research
and analysis), SolarServer (an online portal to solar energy) and Greentech Media Inc.
These institutions compile price changes of solar components periodically. The module andinverter cost alone makes up about 76% of the total investment cost. Table 3 below showsa breakdown of the total investment cost. The total investment cost for the 1MW project isestimated at US$5,000,000.
Table 3: Cost breakdown for the Grid-Connected Solar PV system
Component

Cost (US$/W)

Module

3.10

Inverter

0.72

Cables

0.15

Mountings

0.25

Eng & PM

0.10

Labour

0.25

Miscellaneous

0.43

Total

5.00

The economic analysis for this work was done by first developing a base case scenario
consisting of the present electricity cost and other financial parameters. Subsequentscenarios were then developed from this base case to help analyse the implications of thevarious financing options on the project. Some of the options considered include grants/
capital subsidies, feed-in tariffs (FiT) and carbon credit financing. The parameters used todevelop the base case include;
•
•
•
•
•
•

Solar PV system cost			Operating and Maintenance Cost		
Electricity Export Rate			
Project Life					Discount Rate				Inflation Rate				= US$5.00/W=US$0.01/kWh=US$0.08/kWh(Bulk generation charge)=25years (solar panel guarantee period)
=10%
=0%

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•
•

Grant/Capital Subsidy			=0%
GHG Credit				=US$0/tonne

The base case scenario results in a simple payback period of about 62 years, which ismore than twice the project life. However, applying a feed-in tariff scheme to the base casescenario as show in figure 4 indicates that it is possible for the project to be paid for within its
lifetime with a feet-in tariff of about US$0.20/kWh. Figure 5, on the other hand, shows that,the project will be viable only if a feed-in tariff of about US$0.38/kWh is paid for electricity
generation.

Figure 4: Feed-in tariff scenario

Figure 5: Net Present Value of the Project

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175. Conclusion
The design of a roof-mounted grid-connected solar PV system required that a solar resource
assessment be carried out for the KNUST. This revealed that, KNUST receives about
4.30kWh/m2/day according to the SWERA data for KNUST. The roof assessment also
revealed that, a 1MW solar system would require a total of about 5,900m2 of total roof space
for the installation. These roofs must be oriented southwards in order to receive the maximum
amount of solar radiation. In selecting the solar PV components, both international and local
dealers were contacted and the best in terms of performance and cost were selected. A
polycrystalline PV module was selected because if combines benefits from both cost andtotal area required.
The analysis of the RETScreen simulation results reveal that, the system when installed
will generate an average of about 1,159MWh of electricity a year; which is about 12.5% of
KNUST’s electricity consumption needs with a performance ratio of 73.40%. The project also
stands the chance of saving about 850 tonnes of CO2 which would have been emitted by acrude oil fired thermal power plant generating the same amount of electricity.
The financial analysis of the simulation results indicate that, at the prevailing bulk generation
charge of about US$0.08/kWh and a total system cost of about US$5/Wp, the project canbe considered as not financially viable since its payback period will be about 45 years. It is
important to note that, a tariff of about US$0.38/kWh will make the project more financially
viable. There are also some non-financial benefits like the greenhouse gas emissions savings
which can in the long run help mitigate the adverse effects of the climate change problem
plaguing the entire earth.

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ATPS (2013): Design and Analysis of a 1MW Grid-Connected Solar PV System in Ghana. ATPS Research Paper No. 27

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