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The study presents the economic feasibility assessment of converting the produced biogas from water hyacinth biomass into electricity. Approximately, 0.3793 m3CH4/kgVS was generated from the water hyacinth biomass. The research indicated that the available water hyacinth population on the Lower Volta River in the year 2020 could potentially generate a methane yield of 53.676 × 106m3. The volume of methane gas generated had the potential to produce an annual electricity output of 110.792 × 106 kWh, which could be integrated into the national grid. The economic analysis indicated positive results with an initial total investment cost of $67,273,700. The project showed a positive net present value (NPV) of $8,923,769 and a levelized cost of 0.172 $/kWh. The simple payback and equity payback periods were determined to be 5.5 and 11.3 years, respectively. Furthermore, a sensitivity analysis conducted showed that the project's NPV remained positive when variations in input parameters such as initial cost, operations, and maintenance cost were less than 15% sensitive range. However, a 30% reduction in the feed-in tariff cost resulted in a negative NPV. In conclusion, biogas production from water hyacinth biomass in Ghana can make a significant contribution to the country's energy mix and help alleviate the energy shortfall in rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Limited fossil resources, the continuous increment in fuel prices and severe environmental problems require new sustainable electricity generation options, which utilize renewable energies. Solar photovoltaic generation is a proven renewable energy technology and has the potential to become cost-effective in the future, for it produces electricity from the solar radiation. In Ghana, the electricity demand is rapidly increasing at a rate of 10% annually. In the attempt to change the conventional energy intensive economical development and its negative impact on the environment, the government has begun to support the development of the solar photovoltaic technology strongly. In this paper, the state of solar photovoltaic, the challenges facing the industry, the potential of the technology, the policies and strategies to promote development of the technology have been presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Developed countries are aspiring to increase the production of biofuels in order to reduce dependence on crude oil and also improve energy security, developing countries such as Ghana can adopt biofuel technologies to provide supports for rural developments. Bioethanol has been identified as one of the biofuels that can be developed in order to meet the targets as stipulated in Ghana''s Strategic National Energy Plan (SNEP) up to 2020. The focus of this study was to identify the available feedstocks and their quantities for bioethanol production that can support this policy. The potential energy crops identified were cassava, yam and maize. However, cassava was identified to be the most suitable feedstock for bioethanol production since an average of less than 50% of its domestic supply is consumed as food. Even if best farming practices were adapted, bioethanol from yam and maize would not be significant compared to that of cassava. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]