Feasibility Assessment of a Small-Scale Agrivoltaics-Based Desalination Plant with Flywheel Energy Storage—Case Study: Namibia

József Kádár (), Omad (Hassan) Abdelshakour (), Tali Zohar and Tareq Abu Hamed
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József Kádár: Haifa Center for German and European Studies, University of Haifa, Abba Khoushy Ave 199, Haifa 3498838, Israel
Omad (Hassan) Abdelshakour: The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, Kibbutz Ketura, D.N. Hevel Eilot 8884000, Israel
Tali Zohar: The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, Kibbutz Ketura, D.N. Hevel Eilot 8884000, Israel
Tareq Abu Hamed: The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, Kibbutz Ketura, D.N. Hevel Eilot 8884000, Israel

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 9, 1-21

Abstract: As climate change and population growth threaten rural communities, especially in regions like Sub-Saharan Africa, rural electrification becomes crucial to addressing water and food security within the energy-water-food nexus. This study explores social innovation in microgrid projects, focusing on integrating micro-agrovoltaics (APV) with flywheel energy storage systems (FSSs) and small-scale water desalination and purification plants. Employing a mixed-methods approach to assess the economic viability of FSS and APV-powered desalination, we believe that social innovation could serve as a significant tool for rural development, requiring collaboration between governments, the private sector, and nonprofit organizations. While FSS technology for microgrids has not been entirely developed, it holds promise as an alternative energy storage solution. Our capital budgeting analysis, presented within the context of social innovation, reveals positive Net Present Values (NPV) and a short payback period over the project’s 20-year lifespan.

Keywords: agrivoltaics; community microgrid; social innovation; energy storage; NPV; Namibia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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