4E Analysis of solar photovoltaic, wind, and hybrid power systems in southern Pakistan: energy, exergy, economic, and environmental perspectives

Pakistan faces significant challenges in its energy sector, including a persistent supply-demand gap and heavy reliance on imported fossil fuels, leading to high costs, environmental degradation, and energy insecurity. This study examines the potential of solar Photovoltaic Systems (PVS), Wind Turbine Systems (WTS), and solar Photovoltaic and Wind Turbine Hybrid Systems (PVWHS) in the southern region of Pakistan through a comprehensive 4E analysis, encompassing energy, exergy, economic, and environmental perspectives. Initially, the data on Global Horizontal Irradiation (GHI) was sourced from Meteonorm, while wind data was obtained from the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program of the World Bank. A hypothetical 50 MW powerplant is considered in this study. For PV potential, PVsyst software is utilized to simulate various panels from Tier-1 Photovoltaic (PV) manufacturers covering mono-Si, poly-Si, and thin-film (Cd–Te) technologies. For wind system analysis, Google Earth Pro is used to design the wind farm layout, and the PyWake library is utilized to evaluate the wind system performance and energy generation. In this study, the Bastankhah wake deficit model, along with the weighted sum superposition model, is applied to assess the wind turbine performance. The remaining analyses, including exergy, economic, and environmental assessments, are conducted using MATLAB and Excel. All four sites – Tando-Ghulam Ali, Sanghar, Sujawal, and Umerkot – demonstrated promising energy generation capacities for solar PVS, WTS, and PVWHS. Tando Ghulam Ali emerges as the optimal site with thin-film PVS systems exhibiting the lowest Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) and significant Net Present Value (NPV). A weighted score analysis using the Factor Rating Method (FRM) identifies a 40 MW PVS and 9 MW WTS combination as the most feasible mix, offering substantial energy generation and carbon emissions reduction benefits. These findings provide actionable insights for stakeholders and policymakers aiming to enhance renewable energy adoption in Pakistan.