Wave Power in the Electricity Generation Mix : a Case Study of Ghana

• The access and quality of electricity are key factors for sustainable development. Off grid areas across the globe, in particular the rural areas in Africa, are in the need of renewable energy technologies as reliable electricity providers. Dedicated investments and technical reforms are needed in the renewable energy sector in order to diversify, expand and proliferate technologies able to provide reliable and affordable electricity for all. A specific case is Ghana where the electrification rate is approximately 79 %, but the utilization rate is approximately 35 %. To improve the current situation, different renewable energy systems should be brought into the power generation mix, and wave power can substantially contribute to electricity generation in Ghana and other countries with wave power resources. The aim of this study was to evaluate the wave power resource availability in Ada, Ghana, where a 100 MW wave power farm is planned to be located, and estimate the quantity of electricity that can be generated using different capacity factors. The results show that the wave climate in Ghana is mild with annual mean values of significant wave height of ca. 1.3 m, energy period of ca. 12 s and wave power value of ca. 10 kW/m. The availability, capacity factors and electricity generation were estimated to be high during the most of the year with exceptions for May, November and December. Estimated annual electricity generation were 175 GWh, to 610 GWh, for capacity factors in the range of 25%, 50% and ca. 70%, respectively. This study conclude that the annual resource availability factor is ca. 80%, suggesting that a wave power farm would be able to produce electricity during the most of the annual cycle. If these result were to be confirmed, wave power will be considered a dependable technology for electricity generation in countries such as Ghana and possibly qualify as baseload in the electricity generation mix.

Ämnesord

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Elektroteknik och elektronik -- Annan elektroteknik och elektronik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Electrical Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Information Engineering -- Other Electrical Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Information Engineering (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Teknisk fysik med inriktning mot elektricitetslära

Engineering Science with specialization in Science of Electricity

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