Impact of Grid-Connected PV systems in residential areas in Saudi Arabia

The main objective of the presented work is to determine the ability of Grid-Connected Photovoltaic systems to reduce total and peak load demand in Saudi Arabia. Firstly, the impact of linking PV directly with grid has been assessed to find the level of penetration that can be achieved without any technical changes in the Saudi utility network. Actual data for both loads and irradiance has been used to build a realistic model. The results show a significant benefit of using GCPV system in the network. It would reduce the energy supplied from the main generators and help to decrease the peak demand load to give almost constant load profile. Also, this work sets the limits of PV penetration in the network and shows the benefit of reactive power demand in the system for maintaining the voltage level.