Feasibility study of micro pumped hydro for integration of solar photovoltaic energy into Puerto Rico´s electric grid

We commence our study of the use of micro pumped-hydro for the integration of solar photovoltaic energy into Puerto Rico´s electric grid. We used HOMER to recreate and simulate a hypothetic scenario where 80% of the energy produced during the day is injected into the grid and the remaining 20% is stored to be injected at a later time. Considering the amount of energy produced, the price per kWh, the total cost of the system and economic parameter such as depreciation, inflation, escalation rate among others we performed a net present value analysis to evaluate the economic feasibility of the project. Preliminary results show that variability of the solar resource and grid limitations to receive renewable energy can be compensated using pumped hydro storage.