Feasibility Study of Pumped Storage System for Application in Amhara Region, Ethiopia

Abstract: In these days environmental issues are critical. Environmental concerns mainly rise from energy productions. Fortunately Ethiopia is trying to use renewable energy sources as a means for electrical power production and it is a great start for a long, tiresome green energy journey. The basic job to be done in green energy sectors is to maximize the capacity of renewable technologies to fulfil the best efficiency.  Intermittent nature of the energy production and their inefficiency to meet peak load demands are the basic problems in renewable energy sectors.   Ethiopia’s electrical power production is mainly dependent on hydropower; according to latest data from EEPCO hydro covers 88% of the total production. There are two major nature of this power plant; since the working medium is water it is mainly dependent on the nature of the seasons and secondly it rarely meets peak load demands. After the erection of the power plant the energy production is not time dependent; it can produce power continuously; but the consumption is time dependent which is defined as peak hours and off-peak hours. There is excess load in time of off-peak hours and scarcity in peak hours. So this work can help to maximize the capacity of the water for production by using technological advancements to produce lot of energy in almost full capacity throughout the year to full fill the need of our country. Tana Beles hydropower plant is the largest hydropower plant which starts to work in May, 2010 with an investment cost of $500 million and capacity of 460 MW. The project is planted in Amhara region using the water source of Lake Tana. To make this large and very necessary renewable energy resource sustainable using energy storage system will be vital. This study will figure out a pumped storage system for the hydropower plant for additional power production and for the sustainability of the water resource.    Pumped storage system is the only viable, large-scale resource that is being broadly utilized today for storing energy, and it offers the best option available for harnessing off-peak generation from renewable sources. The contributions of pumped storage hydro to our nation’s transmission grid by providing stability services, storage capacity needs, and expanding the green job market are considerable today.   The high energy demand of the pump will be considered to be covered using the excess electrical power production during night or weekends and if the resource is available using wind solar PV hybrid systems.   The author will try to assess the technology not only for other mini hydro power plants but also for irrigation and other purposes merely in Amhara region, Ethiopia. The feasibility of the system will be considered technically and economically for the hydropower plant.