Integration of Microgrids and Electric Vehicle Technologies in the National Grid as the Key Enabler to the Sustainable Development for Rwanda

Abstract

Rwanda is an East African Community (EAC) nation with rapid and remarkable past development in different sectors and still with the ambitious targets and plans to be achieved in the coming years ahead. The government plans universal electricity access by 2024 with 52% grid connection and 48% off-grid connections. In the transport sector, the concept of electric vehicles has been initiated and started in order to contribute to the UN Paris agreement and decrease the reliance of the transport sector on gaseous fuels which are one source of air pollutants leading to climate change, premature deaths, and morbidity associated with poor air quality. With higher electricity demand than the generation of the Rwandan power grid, different energy strategies are being developed with the overall objective to achieve the targeted universal energy access. In order to overcome the aforementioned issue, this paper proposes an integration of solar PV microgrids for the satisfaction of electric vehicle (EV) technology in Rwanda. Using HOMER Grid software, a managed EV charging station is simulated to a grid connected solar PV microgrid with storage in order to assess the economic impact. The results show that the proposed technology can lower the levelized cost (LCOE) of electricity by 139.7%. This study can contribute to further research developments in either different perspectives related to the integration of distributed energy resources (DERs) with electric vehicles or studies related to affordable and environment-energy systems.