TITLE:
Technical and Economic Feasibility of Solar Pump Irrigation in the North-Niayes Region in Senegal
AUTHORS:
Aminata Sarr, Lamine Diop, Ibrahima Diatta, Yaye Deffa Wane, Ansouma Bodian, Sidy Mouhamed Seck, Nicola Lamaddalena, Luciano Mateos
KEYWORDS:
Irrigation, Solar, Feasibility, Techno-Economic, Niayes
JOURNAL NAME:
Engineering,
Vol.13 No.7,
July
22,
2021
ABSTRACT: Northern Niayes is an area where agriculture is the
main activity. Water used for irrigation in this area comes exclusively from
groundwater. Farmers do not have access to electricity, thus fuel is the main
source of energy used, which is very expensive. The objective of this study was
to assess the techno-economic feasibility of solar irrigation pumps. Regarding
technical feasibility, pump sizing was carried out on the basis of irrigation
management, irrigation techniques, and water distribution. Also, the economic
feasibility was studied on the basis of the Net Present Value, Benefit-Cost
Ratio, Internal Rate of Return and Payback Period. Results showed for
cultivated area ranging from 0.05 ha to 1.91 ha, pumps’ flow rate does not vary
greatly from one irrigation technique to another. It varies between 2.5 m3/h
and 31 m3/h. However, pressure and power are higher when using drip
and sprinkler irrigation techniques, ranging from 27.8 m to 39.9 m for drip and
40.1 m to 58.5 m for sprinkler irrigation. The power varies between 0.05 kW and
1.6 kW for manual, between 0.05 kW and 2.5 kW for drip and between 0.1 kW and
4.75 kW for sprinkler irrigation. The investment cost is variable (669 euros to
21,400 euros), depending on the cultivated area, pump brands and characteristics,
and irrigation techniques. Results show that the investment cost ranges from
669 euros (438,500 CFA) to 4090 euros (2,683,000 CFA) when using the manual irrigation
technique, from 1281 euros to 20,600
euros when using the drip irrigation technique and from 819 euros to 21,403
euros when using sprinkler irrigation technique for individual pumps. The
investment cost is higher when using reservoirs. In this case, the investment
cost varied between €722 and €6062 for manual irrigation, €1532 and €25,882 for
drip irrigation and €900 and €28,000 for sprinkling. However, the total investment
cost at the entire lowland scale is higher when farmers use the pumps
individually and lower when farmers use the pumps in groups when using manual
and drip irrigation techniques. NPV varies between 15,993€ (0.75 ha) and
103,139€ (1.41 ha) and between 13,064€ and 86,139€ when using sprinkler
irrigation techniques with PVC pipes and when using the drip irrigation
technique, respectively. BCR is estimated to average 2.2, 2, and 2 respectively
when using manual, drip, and sprinkler irrigation techniques. In addition, PBP
is reached more rapidly when using the manual irrigation technique.