Prioritizing Renewable Energy Sources for Electrification in Ghana: A Decision Support Framework Using Fuzzy Theory

Abstract

With the prevailing power crisis, the Ghana government has become very interested in introducing renewable energy sources into the current power mix as a sustainable means of electrification across the country. The current study adopts Fuzzy TOPSIS approach based on experts’ decision of technical (efficiency, reliability, installed capacity, and technology maturity), economic (initial investment cost, operating and maintenance cost, and feed-in tariff), environmental (greenhouse gas emissions and land requirement), and social (job creation and social acceptance) criteria assessment to create a decision-making framework for the selection of renewable energy sources for Ghana's electrical power generation. The current study shows that hydro electricity remains the most feasible energy resource to meet Ghana's energy demand, followed by solar, wind, and biomass, with closeness coefficient of 0.77, 0.34, 0.22, and 0.09, respectively. However, hybrid power generation from two or more energy resources will further make renewable energy power generation attractive and competitive against the existing thermal power plants, whose share in the current energy mix stands at 69%. The results of the sensitivity analysis demonstrate a high level of stability and coherence with the decision-makers' judgment. The current study, therefore, offers a basis for prioritizing various renewable energy resources for electrification in Ghana.