View article

Photovoltaic Hybrid Mini-grid Systems (PVHMS) present an attractive solution to providing electricity to the remote communities of Australia that do not have access to centralised networks. PVHMS can help to address some of the shortcomings of both diesel-only mini-grids and stand-alone photovoltaic (PV) systems, and are often the lowest cost option, particularly given rising fuel prices and the additional cost and difficulty of fuel transportation to remote areas [1]–[3]. However, PVHMS inherently add some novel complexities to system design, implementation and operation beyond those of their underlying parent technologies. A particular challenge is adapting standard control systems in order to achieve and maintain optimal operation with a highly variable and somewhat unpredictable solar resource [4]. As such, there are risks associated with the technology’s use that may be quite different to those understood for standalone PV or diesel-only mini-grids. PVHMS are also a relatively new technology in the Asia/Pacific region and although system numbers are increasing, the benefits and risks associated with these technologies, and the extent to which these are understood and managed by stakeholders, will be fundamental to their ultimate future success or failure [5],[6]. In the Australian Northern Territory, Power & Water Corporation (PWC) through its Indigenous Essential Services (IES), own, operate and maintain 52 isolated electrical mini-grids totaling 76MW of generation capacity [7]. The energy source mix for PWC’s mini-grids is dominated by diesel (contributed 88% in 2009). In 2013 Epuron1 commissioned the integration of three PV …