Wind energy potential assessment and cost analysis of a wind power generation system located at Búrfell

Wind energy harnessing is a new energy production alternative in Iceland, current installed wind power in Iceland sums up to 1.8 MW which in contrast is 0.1 % of the countries total electricity production. This thesis is dedicated to researching the potential cost of wind energy production in Búrfel...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Birgir Freyr Ragnarsson 1988-
Other Authors: Háskóli Íslands
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: 2014
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/1946/18651
Description
Summary:Wind energy harnessing is a new energy production alternative in Iceland, current installed wind power in Iceland sums up to 1.8 MW which in contrast is 0.1 % of the countries total electricity production. This thesis is dedicated to researching the potential cost of wind energy production in Búrfell (Iceland). A Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) approach was applied when estimating the potential cost and the wind energy potential at the site was assessed using a new wind Monte Carlo simulation approach based on historical wind data and autocorrelation effects in wind distribution. Wind energy potential assessment revealed that capacity factor at Búrfell is 40.13 % on average and that E44 wind turbines from Enercon produced significantly more energy at Búrfell on average than estimated by power curves. Key results were that the LCOE for wind energy at Búrfell was estimated 0.0756-0.0857 USD/kWh (assuming 10% WACC), which classifies Búrfell among the lowest LCOE sites for wind energy in Europe. As a conclusion the decision stands whether the estimated LCOE is low enough for wind energy harnessing to be profitable at Búrfell. This conclusion is considered to be an introduction to a further research. Vindorka er talin sem nýr möguleiki til orkuframleiðslu á Íslandi, uppsett vinda á Íslandi í dag er samanlagt 1.8 MW sem samsvarar 0.1 % af orkuframleiðslu landsins. Þessi meistararitgerð er tileinkuð rannsókn á mögulegum kostnaði á framleiddu rafmagni með vindorku í Búrfelli. Notuð var LCOE aðferðafræði við mat á mögulegum kostnaði, mat á framleiðslumöguleikum vinda s í Búrfelli var gert með því að notast við nýja Monte Carlo hermunaraðferð sem byggir á gögnum y r vindhraða og einnig fylgni í vindi á svæðinu. Rannsókn á mögulegri framleiðslu með vindorku á svæðinu leiddi í ljós að nýtnihlutfall E44 vindmylla í Búrfelli er 40.13 % að meðaltali. Einnig kom í ljós að E44 vindmyllur í Búrfelli framleiddu umtalsvert meiri orku en ge ð var út af framleiðanda. Lykilniðurstöður voru að LCOE fyrir vindorku í Búrfelli var ...