An Economic Evaluation of Wind Energy Development in the Developing Caribbean Region: A Case Study of a Proposed Wind Farm Project in St. Vincent
| Autor: | Andre David Williams, 安德雷 |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2012 |
| Druh dokumentu: | 學位論文 ; thesis |
| Popis: | 100 The use of wind energy has ballooned over the year as exemplified by the accretion from 18.5 gigawatts (GW) in 2000 to 199.5 GW in 2010 making it one of the fastest growing renewable energy sources (RES) today. The main catalytic drivers responsible for this rapid growth are technological advances in wind turbine designs and reduction in the setup cost. Wind energy development is mainly concerted in the developed countries and it has become an intrinsic part of their energy mix. However, the use of wind energy is exiguous in small island developing states in the Caribbean region (CR) where conditions are conducive to foment wind energy development. Today, many of the islands in the CR, including Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), are exploring the prospect of wind energy development. This thesis aims to evaluate the economic and social attributes of wind energy development in SVG. One of the commitments by the Government of SVG is to increase the use of RES in the electricity sector to 30% by 2015. Consequently, the Government is planning to construct a 4 MW wind farm hence an economic evaluation is eminent to assess its viability. A financial assessment of the project is pertinent to the economic evaluation and hereof, the benefit-cost analysis tool was employed. In addition, further economic benefits to be derived from the project such as savings of fossil fuel, greenhouse gases abated, and the reduction in operation and maintenance cost compared to traditional power generation were evaluated. Public attitude and acceptance of wind energy development may not always be preferential and given the diminutive size of SVG, the research also focuses on the social desirability of wind energy development. To elicit the publics’ preferences and to ascertain their willingness to pay (WTP) for the wind farm, the Contingent Valuation Method was applied. Additionally, there are incommensurable benefits and cost which are vital to decision making when considering an energy source for electricity and the Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) was adopted to amalgamate them in the appraisement. The initial setup cost of the project is estimated at US$5.5 million, with a net present value of US$104,900 (2013) and an internal rate of return of 11%, which designate a viable venture for any developer. The economic evaluation revealed that the present value of the total costs amounted to US$7.8 million while the commensurable benefits totalled US$28.8 million over the 20-year lifespan of the project. The analysis of the contingent valuation suggests that the public disposition to wind energy is positive and their acceptance of the wind farm is high. Furthermore, the payment card analysis showed that the respondents are WTP US$11.50 and US$10.39 a month for 1 year on their monthly electricity bill via the non-parametric and parametric approach respectively. This is equivalent to a present value of US$0.40 per kilowatt hour which is higher than the current cost of electricity of US$0.36. To further strengthen the support of wind energy development, the weighted sum method of the MCDA pointed to wind energy as the preferred alternative. |
| Databáze: | Networked Digital Library of Theses & Dissertations |
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