Techno-Economic Design and Simulation of a Hybrid Renewable Energy Micro-grid for Reliable Campus Electrification in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Case Study of Ajayi Crowther University, Nigeria
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Date
2026-06-05
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
IJCER Journal
Abstract
This paper presents the design, simulation, and performance evaluation of a grid-connected hybrid
renewable energy microgrid system for Ajayi Crowther University in Oyo, Nigeria. The system integrates
wind turbines, solar photovoltaic panels, battery energy storage, and grid connection to address
persistent challenges of unreliable national grid supply, high diesel generator costs, and environmental
pollution. Using MATLAB/Simulink, HOMER Pro, and PSCAD simulation platforms, a comprehensive
techno-economic analysis was conducted based on one year of meteorological data (April 2024 - April
2025) and detailed load profiling of the Engineering Faculty and Diocese of Lagos West (DLW) Female
Hostel. The optimised system comprises 300 kW wind capacity (three 100 kW turbines), 250 kW solar
PV, 600 kWh battery storage, and 700 kW inverter capacity. Simulation results demonstrate that the
hybrid system achieves a 74.3% renewable energy fraction, generating 817,820 kWh annually from
renewable sources while reducing grid dependency to 25.7%. The system delivers annual CO emission
reductions of 436.7 tonnes and demonstrates economic viability with a levelised cost of energy of
$0.198/kWh and a payback period of 12.3 years. This study contributes to the growing body of knowledge
on hybrid microgrid applications in Sub-Saharan African university campuses and provides a replicable
framework for similar institutional electrification projects in developing regions
Description
Keywords
Hybrid microgrid, renewable energy, wind-solar integration, battery storage, university campus electrification, Sub-Saharan Africa, Nigeria, HOMER Pro, MATLAB/Simulink
Citation
APA