Sustainable Energy and Artificial Intelligence

Utilization of Solar PV Panel Arrays for Supply Part of Main Pumps Power Demand in a Typical Pumped Storage Hydro Power Plant

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Aref Mohammadzadeh Novin

Energy Fellow, Senior Mechanical Engineer (Retired), Tehran, Iran.

https://doi.org/10.66224/seai.2506-1029
Abstract
The small and medium scale pumped storage hydro power plants are very useful manner of power generation for safe supply of extra electrical power demand of some urban and rural areas during peak hours in many under development countries. But the electric power consumption of the main transfer pumps of these power plants, which usually work continuously about 12~16 hours on a daily basis, is a considerable amount of electric power that is usually supplied via the national cross country electrical power grid network.
Usually, renewable energy sources utilization are more economic in “Hybrid” combination with other conventional electric power sources in under development countries. Otherwise, they have not significant chances to be utilized and effectively developed in these countries.
In this paper, a typical 1040 MW nominal capacity pumped storage hydro power plant, with a total main pumps power consumption of about 50 MW is studied for seeking opportunity for supply part of their electrical power demand via hybrid power generation of a series of solar PV panels (i.e., a small solar PV power plant) and simultaneous electrical power get from national cross-country power grid network.
This study resulted that about 12% of the main pumps power demand can be generated via a suitable design and proper arrangement of series of solar PV panel arrays

Keywords

Power Demand
DC
AC
Capital Investment Payback Period (IPP)
Million Tons Oil Equivalent (MTOE)
Subjects

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  3. NREL, U.S. Solar Photovoltaic System and Energy Storage Cost Benchmarks, With Minimum Sustainable Price Analysis: Q1 2022, NREL USA, Sep. 2022.

  4. PVSYST Software V6.39 (PVsyst Evaluation mode; Demo).

  5. Kalantari Oskoui, A. S., Noorollahi, Y., & Yousefi, H. (2019). Optimal Production Planning of Siahbisheh Pump Storage Power Plant for Water Resources Conservation. Journal of Ecohydrology, 6(2), 533-552.

  6. Spellman, F. R. (2015). Environmental Impacts of Renewable Energy, CRC Press Taylor & Francis Group.

Sustainable Energy and Artificial Intelligence
Volume 2, Issue 1
Winter 2026
Pages 55-62

  • Receive Date 17 June 2025
  • Accept Date 06 October 2025
  • First Publish Date 06 October 2025

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