SIRES - PROMISES AND CHALLENGES

摘要

Development of energy-resources-poor remote rural areas of the world has been discussed by many in the past. Rural electrification was the first major effort undertaken globally. Harnessing locally available renewable energy resources as an environmentally friendly option is gaining momentum. Smart Integrated Renewable Energy Systems (SIRES) offer a resilient and economic path to "energize" the area and reach this goal. After briefly introducing the underpinnings of SIRES, this paper discusses the action plan that needs to be executed for employment of SIRES. The foremost step is to determine energy requirements, analyze resources availability and optimal size system components based on the objectives defined by the customers. SIRES can be tailored to suit the socioeconomic setting of the locale. Innovative financing ideas need to be developed for the users to pay for the benefits in monetary or in other forms. System components can be standardized as much as possible for mass production, replicability and lower cost. The ultimate action is to set up proof-of-concept SIRES experiments to serve as centers for research, development and training, preferably in academic settings. Among these, tasks that have been performed in order to implement SIRES are reviewed in this paper. SIRES promotes socio economic development and improve the living environment by fulfilling the fundamental energy requirements with the help of low cost renewable technologies and intelligent energy management systems.