A Hybrid DEA–Fuzzy COPRAS Approach to the Evaluation of Renewable Energy: A Case of Wind Farms in Turkey

Abstract

The production of renewable energy is becoming one of the most important issues for communities due to the increasing energy demand. The purpose of this paper is to develop a systematized, sustainability-focused evaluation framework for determining the efficiency of wind farms in Turkey. The environmental impact and long-term viability of wind farms are evaluated using an evaluation framework centered on sustainability. The evaluation of their sustainability involves analyzing their energy production, environmental impacts and economic viability. In this study, DEA–Fuzzy COPRAS aims to evaluate the efficiency of 11 wind power plants located in Turkey in the Marmara Region. As inputs, the number of wind turbines, investment cost and distance from the grid are selected. As output, electricity is produced, and daily production time is considered. The proposed DEA–Fuzzy COPRAS aims to eliminate the disadvantages of the conventional methods and to be able to make better decisions regarding the weight value under uncertain conditions. The main advantages of the proposed DEA–Fuzzy COPRAS include a more accurate evaluation of efficiency and the ability to consider multiple criteria simultaneously. Additionally, the proposed DEA–Fuzzy COPRAS considers uncertainty in the inputs and outputs of wind energy production. The results of the proposed work are validated by comparing them with those obtained from a sensitivity analysis of the criteria. Therefore, decision makers can evaluate the efficiency of wind power plants accurately under an imprecise environment. Wind power plant managers or investors and other renewable energy projects can benefit from the proposed method’s implementation by allowing governments and stakeholders to save money and make better use of resources during the planning phase.