This report is emerged in the course Sustainable Energy Systems by Prof. Dr. Olav Hohmeyer in the frame of the master studies of Energy and Environmental Management, at the European University Flensburg. The aim of the report is the creation of a pathway for a 100 % renewable energy system on Malé.
Malé is the capital and the biggest island of the Maldives, in terms of population. Malé is one of the islands with the highest population density worldwide. Expressed in numbers, on Malé are living more than 100,000 people on less than 2 km². The electricity on Malé is produced by own diesel generators, like on nearly every island of the Maldives. Researches about the energy demand on Malé has shown that more than half of the electricity demand comes from the residents.
The analysis of the weather conditions, which were provided for a long term, by Meteoblue, shows that solar panels and wind turbines would have good sun and wind conditions for generating electricity. The high population density with the consequence of a lack of space on Malé, turned out as a big challenge. Due to this challenge, it is nearly impossible to build any renewable energy system on the island itself. Therefore, other parts of the North-Malé-Atoll has been proven as compatible for solar and wind energy. Also, the ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) has proven as compatible to provide energy for Malé. Certainly, OTEC is a technology which must be developed for the implementation on the real energy market. To provide the renewable electricity dependable, the storing of the electricity is necessary. Large scaled battery storages turned out as the best solution for the requirements of Malé.
Before configure the renewables for the 100 % renewable energy generating on Malé, the demand side should be analysed and optimised. With the help of the deep-sea water, which is pumped to the surface in the OTEC system, it is possible to provide Malé with air conditioning (SWAC) and desalination for providing drinking water. On the resident side, appliances (48 %) and cooling (31 %) are responsible for the biggest consumption of electricity. Demand side management is another option to optimize an energy system and reduce the cost. The charging times of the electric vehicles are flexible and thus can be shifted to times of overproduction.
Furthermore, the mobility sector provides a lot of possibilities for energy savings. Besides replacing the petrol based vehicles with electrical vehicles, it is possible to establish sustainable and intelligent public transportation networks and optimise the traffic. Also, it is possible to support the locomotion by bike or by foot.
For scaling up the capacities of the renewable energies and for optimise the storage size, a simulation tool was established in excel. The simulation tool contains an hourly load curve for Malé. Furthermore, real data of wind speeds and solar irradiation for several years are implemented into the model. By this, the simulation of three different future scenarios is possible.
With the hourly simulation model, three different renewable energy scenarios are developed and simulated. Compared with the results of the business-as-usual scenario, the levelized cost of energy can be lowered in two of the renewable scenarios. Besides a 100 % renewable and emission-free energy supply, the possibility of an independent energy system is verified as well.
As the last part of the report, several suggestions for political measures are provided as an action plan. The action plan is divided in parts of technical aspects, policies, financial aspects, transport sector, social aspects and advises for a back-up system.