Design and modeling of an energy village for refugees and host communities in Uganda

Abstract

Instability from neighboring countries especially Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Sudan coupled with Uganda’s open refugee policy has favored influx of refugees and asylum seekers to Uganda. Settling the refugees in various refugee settlements including Bidibidi comes with responsibility of meeting the most pressing emergency humanitarian needs including shelter, medical care, WASH, energy and education. Bidibidi refugee settlement was partitioned in to five zones for administrative purpose. Zone Two in Bidibidi refugee settlement in Yumbe district sits on 19.02 km2 of land and is a home to over 49,794 refugees and host community. Accurate data was key in managing the refugee situation in the country. From survey administered to households in Zone Two in Bidibidi Refugee Settlement to ascertain the energy utilization practices in the zone, total energy demand for the three primary uses of cooking, electrical appliances and water pumping were found to be 3,610 MWh/year with peak load of 410 kW. Renewable energy potential for the zone indicated average hourly wind speed of 2.6 m/s, average solar irradiation for an 8-hour sunshine hour of 0.7 kW/m2 and biogas potential of 246 x 106 m3/year. MATLAB optimization model developed showed an optimal generation capacity for solar and biogas generator systems as 341.4 kW and 225.0 kW respectively. Considering energy cost of 0.10 $/kWh and 0.15 $/kWh for systems operation at 100%, 75%, 50% and 30% capacities, then the payback period, NPV and Cost Benefit Ratio (CBR) were calculated. Positive NPV for the 17 years project lifespan and CBR value greater than 1 showed economic feasibility of the project. Therefore, renewable energy potential for the zone if harnessed was sufficient to meet the energy demand of the households. However, addition of forest residues from the bushy surroundings of the zone by use of remote sensing and capturing the distribution cost for the off-grid power system would provide further picture on the bioenergy potential and the economic analysis respectively.