Load prioritization for maximation of solar energy source in rural households

Solar photovoltaic systems adoption in low income — rural residential sectors is faced with high cost arising from panels sizing and energy storage facility. While the system size can be reduced by being grid-tie there is no uniform policy in South Africa regulating the connection of rooftop system to the grid. The proposed methodology tends to address the affordability issue among rural dwellers by prioritizing the loads to be supply by the solar system; ensuring the dependency of essential load on the renewable source taking into recognizance its availability and time of use period. The control technique is hinged on the applicability of the consumption pattern of the occupants, load prioritization and state of charge of the storage facility and sizing of the system. The reduction in sizing of the system and load prioritization applicability brought about decrease cost of implementation thereby increasing affordability range within the investigated income group.