Performance assessment and resilience of solar mini-grids for sustainable energy access in Ghana

Mini-grids are increasingly adopted as a solution to extending electricity to remote communities in Africa. However, the system's resilience to meet increasing demand amidst degrading performance over time continues to be challenging. This study assessed mini-grid performance and explored factors that should be considered in scaling up mini-grids for sustainability in five island communities in Ghana's Volta Lake. Power generation and load data, visual inspection and thermal imaging data, and electrical systems performance characteristics data were collected and analysed using data loggers installed on site, the IEA PVPS Task 13 guidelines, and the IEC-TS 61724-3: 2016 guidelines, respectively. The study's findings indicate that the solar power conversion efficiency of the mini-grids was generally low and had a 25% - 45% performance ratio. This low efficiency was due to inefficiencies in the battery bank, distribution losses, and unused losses. The overall system efficiency of the mini-grids ranged from 4% to 7%. This is consistent with the literature, which reports that PV power systems in tropical climates have an efficiency of 5% – 15%. The research emphasises the importance of system maintenance, load management, and considering climate change's impact on mini-grid reliability and sustainability. © 2023 Elsevier Ltd