Renewable energy curtailment practices in Jordan and proposed solutions
Ammar Alkhalidi, Khalid Alqarra, Mohammad Ali Abdelkareem, A.G. Olabi
Abstract
Curtailed energy could be used to improve techno-economic aspects and minimize emissions. Jordan is considered a leading country in renewable energy in the Middle East, particularly in wind energy. Due to the low energy demand during peak power generation, 17% of overall wind energy capacity is curtailed in Jordan. In this study, several energy storage systems are discussed to better usage of the curtailed energy which will eventually decrease the energy cost and reduce the carbon emissions. The Li-ion battery was used as a case study to store the curtailed energy produced from wind turbines in Jordan, where its capacity was designed to handle the curtailment for a typical day. The stored energy is then used to charge a significant number of electric vehicles, representing 11.8% of Jordan's total number of electric vehicles. An economic study, showed that the battery energy storage station is economically feasible solution. This would generate profit instead of loss and it will secure work opportunities if vehicle-charging stations were offered as a public-private partnership (PPP) project.