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Cost Summary of Solar Option
The estimated cost of the Solar Option (including a grid-scale battery) is $267 million dollars – only about 10 percent of the estimated cost of a dam on the Ubangi River. The Solar Option is the lowest cost, lowest impact source of power for Inter-Basin Water Transfer to Lake Chad. It can lay the foundation for the regional peace, prosperity and an end to civil unrest.
The dramatically lower cost of the Solar Option results from: 1) steeply reduced costs for production of solar panels and 2) rapid development of efficiently produced grid-scale lithium-ion batteries.
Cost Reduction of Photovoltaic Solar Cells
The Solar Option is now possible because the price of silicon solar cells has fallen. In 2011, when CIMA International planned a 360 MW hydroelectric dam on the Ubangi River, the Solar Option was not a realistic possibility. Today, it is the best option for pumping water to the Lake Chad Basin.
Reduction in the Price of Photovoltaic (PV) Solar Power
Dramatic price reductions to $0.30/W mean that solar power now costs much less than a hydroelectric dam on the Ubangi. For example, 375MW of solar panels – equivalent to the Palumbo Dam wattage — would cost approximately $135 million dollars.
Large Scale Solar Installation in Arizona, USA
The photo shows a 290 MW solar installation in Arizona – a recent example of a solar power project similar in size to what is needed here. Large solar arrays, about 2 square kilometers in area, can be installed near the pumping station on the Ubangi River – or situated in the sunny Sahel with a transmission line connection.
Grid-Scale Battery Storage
A limitation of solar power is that it is generated only in daytime – about 8 hours per day of intense sunshine. However, grid-scale battery energy storage can lengthen daily pumping times. Recent advances and cost reductions make lithium-ion batteries a viable technology to extend solar power pumping.
Grid-Scale Battery Energy Storage
Above is a view of the Tesla 129 MWh grid-scale battery installed in Australia in 2017. A 1000MWh lithium-ion grid-scale battery is projected to cost $100 per kilowatt-hour in 2028. Several other new grid-scale energy storage technologies are under development that could lower this cost even further.