Prospects of renewable energy as a non-rivalry energy alternative in Libya

摘要

Despite the fact that Libya is a petro-state economy, yet the country faces serious challenges to supply its substantially growing demand for energy. With the high volatility in fossil fuel prices in international markets, its predictable depletion and environmental concerns, as well as the exacerbated competition among rival forces to control oil and gas resources, significant efforts are required to develop non-rivalry energy alternative (NREA) solutions to bridge the demand?supply energy gap and diversify the energy sources of Libya. The country has a significant potential of diverse renewable energy (RE) resources that can have a pivotal role in the national energy mix as a NREA. This paper does not only provide a broad review of the current status of Libya?s energy resources, but it also carries out a comprehensive resource assessment of available RE potentials. Existing utilization state and predicted development potential of various RE technologies in Libya, including solar energy, wind (onshore & offshore), biomass, wave and geothermal energy, are thoroughly investigated. Advanced technologies critically needed to enhance energy security and improve the penetration level of renewables, including hydrogen storage and energy efficiency (EE), are elaborately discussed. It is concluded that solar and onshore wind energy resources accompanied with EE measures are the major contributors, as NREA, to displace fossil fuels for energy services. The average potential of solar PV and onshore wind over the Libyan territories amounts to 1.9 MWh/kW/year and 400 W/m2, respectively. Notwithstanding, biomass and geothermal energy sources are likely to play an important complementary role in this regard.