TECHNO ECONOMIC COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF PV MODULE INSTALLATION TECHNIQUES

Abstract

igeria faces rising electricity costs and diesel power dependence which creates a need to find affordable and effective renewable energy alternatives. The study conducts a techno-economic comparison of three photovoltaic (PV) systems which include rooftop, ground-mounted, and floating PV systems at a Nigerian site that represents Lagos weather conditions. The researchers used PVsyst software to simulate system performance while they performed economic assessment through HOMER Pro software. The results demonstrate that floating PV systems produced their maximum annual energy yield of 334 MWh and achieved 86 % performance ratio, because their advanced module cooling system prevented thermal losses through lower operating temperatures. The ground-mounted system reached 321 MWh of energy production and had an 82% performance ratio, while the rooftop system produced the least energy, which amounted to 294 MWh due to shading and increased thermal losses. Economic analysis revealed that floating PV had the lowest levelized cost of energy (₦147.41/kWh) and shortest payback period (1.99 years), which was closely followed by the ground-mounted system. The research results indicate that floating PV provides the optimal solution for organizations that seek to enhance their energy production and financial benefits in comparable settings.