The potential of photovoltaic systems to reduce energy costs for office buildings in time-dependent and peak-load-dependent tariffs
2019 (English)In: Sustainable cities and society, ISSN 2210-6707, Vol. 44, p. 871-879Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
Electrical power generation across the world is facing dramatic changes for a variety of reasons related to reliability, economics and environmental concerns. Over recent years a significant increase has been observed in installed capacity of photovoltaic systems. Due to their typical seasonal and diurnal energy conversion patterns their integration into power systems creates new opportunities as well as threats. This paper intends to show how photovoltaics can contribute to reducing peak load in office buildings and thereby minimise expenditure on electricity during time- and peak-load-dependent energy prices/tariffs. An additional benefit is also provided to the national power system by reducing the need for peaking power stations. The calculations are performed for energy tariffs commonly used for commercial buildings in Poland. The simulation relies on climatic and price data for 2016. The results show significant potential for photovoltaics to reduce the peak load (from almost 60 kW to slightly over 44 kW) whilst simultaneously minimising energy costs to the building (from 1.2% up to 5.8% depending on the selected tariff). This study demonstrates the economic benefits of using PV system for reducing peak loads. A sensitivity analysis with regard to photovoltaics investment costs is carried out showing that the increasing investment costs have different impact on total energy cost depending on the considered energy tariff.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier Ltd , 2019. Vol. 44, p. 871-879
Keywords [en]
Energy tariff, Integration, Peak shaving, Renewable energy, Cost reduction, Economics, Energy conversion, Investments, Office buildings, Photovoltaic cells, Renewable energy resources, Sensitivity analysis, Commercial building, Electrical power generation, Environmental concerns, National power systems, Photovoltaic systems, Renewable energies, Cost benefit analysis
National Category
Energy Engineering
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:mdh:diva-41439DOI: 10.1016/j.scs.2018.10.048ISI: 000451754200069Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85056757149OAI: oai:DiVA.org:mdh-41439DiVA, id: diva2:1266739
2018-11-292018-11-292022-11-08Bibliographically approved