Use of Photovoltaic system for standby operation of a Petrol station: A case study national oil Petrol station at Nairobi West

Abstract

The objective of the study was to compare the cost of using a standby diesel engine generator with that of a photovoltaic system to operate the equipments at a petrol station during a power blackout . The total power consumption for operation of the petrol station was estimated from the rating of the installed equipments and subsequently a photovoltaic system of equivalent output was designed . The advantages and disadvantages of the two systems were contrasted. The photovoltaic system was found to be viable for the petrol station in spite of a high initial cost. It has the advantagesof low maintenance cost, clean renewable energy and is noise free.