Comparative Study of Diesel-Only and Hybrid Energy Systems: A Case from Rural Bangladesh

The government of Bangladesh is unable to provide adequate support for grid extension and the supply of electricity to remote or rural areas as a result of the high investment and maintenance costs. The lack of power causes a crisis in fundamental human living values; education. Here three cases have been analyzed involving a rural location, Chandpur. This research compares a diesel-only system, a hybrid PV/Diesel/Battery system, and a hybrid without battery storage using HOMER Pro software. Technical aspects including Global Horizontal Irradiation and load demand were examined. According to these datasets, the model's peak demand was 405.71kW, which was utilized to create an off-grid model and optimize it using Homer Pro. The established system is capable of producing 885.654 MWh of energy annually. The principal analytical elements encompass the cost of electricity (COE), net present cost (NPC), renewable energy proportion, and carbon emissions. The results underscore the fact that hybrid systems, particularly those with battery storage, provide significant benefits in terms of reducing fuel consumption, lowering costs, and mitigating environmental impact. Therefore, they are the most viable option for future off-grid energy solutions.