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 Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rser

The potential of concentrating solar power (CSP) for electricity generation in T

Libya
⁎
Basim Belgasima, , Yasser Aldalib, Mohammad J.R. Abdunnabic, Gamal Hashemd, Khaled Hossind
a
Mechanical Engineering Department, University of Benghazi, Libya
b
Mechanical Engineering Department, Omar Almokhtar University, Libya
c
Centre for Solar Energy Research and Studies, Tajoura P.O. Box 12932, Libya
d
Department of Mechanical and Construction Engineering, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8ST, UK

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: The rapid increase in energy demand and the limited resources of fossil fuel as well as the environmentally
Resources assessments damaging effects, drive the world to find new options for sustainable electricity generation, which is represented
Concentrating solar power (CSP) by renewable energies. Concentrating solar power (CSP) is one of the most promising technologies in the field of
Weather data electricity generation to tackle this issue with a competitive cost in the future. This paper presents an in-
Libya
vestigation of the potential of implementation of CSP plants in Libya. The socio-economic context, current
energy situation of the country and different types of CSP plants are discussed. Moreover, an assessment of site
parameters required for CSP plants including solar resources, land use and topography, water resources and grid
connections are investigated in detail. In addition, thermo-economic simulation of a 50 MW parabolic trough
power plant is performed. The simulation is conducted based on meteorological data measured by the weather
station installed at the Centre for Solar Energy Research and Studies (CSERS) in Tajoura city. The performance
results are compared with the reference plant Andasol-1 in Spain. Even though the proposed plant is located on
the North coast where solar resources are at their minimum compared with other regions of the country, the
outcome of the study proves that Libya is not only suitable but it can be economically competitive in the
implementation of CSP technology.

1. Introduction increasing attention due to the durability and dispatchability of these

The rapid growth in global energy consumption is leading to a great
increase in energy demand. It is estimated that electric energy con-
sumption will double in the next 15–20 years. This demand is due to an
increase in population and the scope of wealth [1]. Fossil fuels supply
about 80% of the total primary energy consumed worldwide [2].
Considering the limited sources of fossil fuels and their negative impact
on the environment, which is illustrated in direct pollution and gas
emissions, the challenge which faces the global community is to find
alternative energy sources as a substitute for fossil fuels as well as sa-
tisfying the increase in energy demand [3,4].
Renewable energy sources are considered a valuable alternative
source of energy since they are sustainable, cheap and environmentally
friendly [5]. Concentrating solar power (CSP) plants is one of the most
attractive technologies to produce electricity especially in countries
that are rich in solar energy resources. CSP technology has an
systems. Globally, the total installed capacity is about 5 GW with large-
scale solar thermal power plants connected to the grid. Spain and USA
are the leading countries in this technology in which they have 61%
and 18% respectively of the total generated capacity. New markets have
been emerged in countries like South Africa, Morocco and Chile due to
their solar recourses and political dedication of their governments. This
technology depends on converting solar arrays into heat that can drive
conventional turbine generators or engines. The CSP systems range
from small isolated units producing few kilowatts (kW) to up to grid-
connected power plants of megawatts (MW) [6–10].
Libya is an oil- rich country nevertheless it is trying to reduce its
dependency on fossil fuels in order to develop a more sustainable and
clean source of energy and income. Fortunately, Libya has an enormous
potential for solar energy which it is about 1,759,540 km2 area at the
centre of North Africa. It has a long coast of 1900 km on the
Mediterranean Sea and the vast majority of the country is desert with a

Abbreviations: CSERS, Centre for Solar Energy Research and Studies; DNI, Direct Normal Irradiance; GDP, Gross Domestic Production; GHI, Global Horizontal Irradiance; HTF, Heat
Transfer Fluid; LCOE, Levelized Cost of Energy; LFR, Linear Fresnel Reflector; SAM, System Advisory Model
⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: basim.belgasim@yahoo.com (B. Belgasim).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2018.03.045
Received 26 January 2017; Received in revised form 12 March 2018; Accepted 17 March 2018
1364-0321/ © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
B. Belgasim et al.
high potential for solar radiation [11–13]. Based on the German
Aerospace Centre, each square kilometre (km2) of this region receives
solar energy equivalent of 1.5 million barrels of crude oil annually [14].
This review paper is an attempt to assess the potential of CSP gen-
eration in Libya. It will help for future policy, planning and im-
plementation of this emerging technology in the country. This study
would also be useful in attracting the investments in development CSP
based power plants in the Sahara Desert and MENA region. A review of
socio-economic and energy situation is investigated to highlight the
energy cries in the country. It is in the context a description of different
CSP systems has been also presented. A detailed assessment of the
factors effecting the deployment of this technology is conducted. In
addition, a thermo-economic performance analysis of a 50 MW para-
bolic trough based power generation is presented and compared with
the reference commercial plant Andasol-1 installed in Spain.
2. Socio-economic context
The population and population growth rate are one of the major
driving forces for electrical energy demand in Libya. The population of
Libya has grown from 5.3 million in 2000 to about 7 million in 2015
with an average growth rate of 1.7%. Consequently, the population is
expected to reach to 8 million in 2020 and this statistic does not take
into account the foreign labours and immigrants [14,15].
Regardless of the political instability situation in Libya since 2011,
the economic growth represents the second main driving force for the
electric energy demand in the country. The total GDP of Libya in 2000
was around 0.6 million $/capita and grew to reach 0.9 million $/capita
in 2013. The average long term per capita GDP growth rate is 3.8% a
year. In addition, forecasting investigations expect the GDP of Libya to
reach approximately 13 million $/capita in 2020 [16,17].
The economic structure of the country consists of three main sec-
tors: oil and gas export, services sector, and agriculture. In 2012, ex-
ports of oil, natural gas and their derivatives represented about 78% of
the total economy of the country. In the same year, the services sector
and agricultural activity represented 20% and 2% respectively of the
total economy of the country [17].
3. Energy situation in Libya
The growth in both population and economy put increasing pressure
on energy generation and demand all over Libya. This electric demand
requires further significant investments in electricity generation in-
cluding power lines and power stations. Libya's electric demand is il-
lustrated in Fig. 1 based on the data obtained from the General Electric
Company of Libya. It can be observed that electric demand is growing
rapidly, around 8–10% annually, and is therefore expected to reach
about 9 GW by 2020 [11,12,18,19].
The General Electric Company of Libya (GECOL), a government
owned company, is responsible for the operation of the entire power
sector in the country. All the power plants in Libya have been installed
and operated by GECOL since it was established in 1984. Libya has a
total installed power generation capacity of 6.3 GW [20]. In Libya, most
of the electrical energy production comes from fossil-fuelled conven-
tional power plants including gas-turbine, steam-turbine and combined
cycle power plants. Gas turbine and combined cycle power plants have
a share of 43% and 37% respectively in total installed power capacity;
the share of steam power plants is 20% in total. Furthermore, some
small diesel power plants are also used to contribute to the energy
supply, especially in remote areas [14,16,18].
The growth in electrical power demand will out-strip production
capacity and so GECOL plans to build new combined cycle and steam
cycle power plants. In addition to increasing generation capacity,
GECOL is also planning to upgrade and expand the country's power
transmission grid. Table 1 shows current and planned electricity gen-
eration infrastructure expansion [20]. The only way to reduce the
2
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15
dependency on fossil fuel, and the environmental problems caused by
combustion of fossil fuels, is to use renewable energy sources that are
sufficiently available in Libya, particularly solar energy. Libya has
planned to develop renewable energy for electricity generation see
Table 2. The main target is to produce 10% of total electricity demand
from renewable energy by 2025 which is equivalent to 2.219 GW.
However, this plan was interrupted in 2011 by the political uprising
[21].
4. Concentrating solar power systems CSP
CSP systems consist of two main parts namely the solar field and the
power block. The solar field concentrates direct solar radiation received
from the sun and converts the solar energy to thermal energy.
Consequently, the heat is used to produce steam which will drive the
power block to generate electricity. CSP plants can be classified based
on the types of solar collectors used into two groups. The first is line
focus technologies which concentrate the sun's heat along the focal
length of the collector represented in a parabolic trough and linear
Fresnel reflector. The second is point focus technologies which con-
centrate the sun's heat on a point including a power tower and para-
bolic dish [22–24].
4.1. Parabolic trough system
The parabolic trough solar power plant represents the most mature,
successful and developed concentrating solar power technology for
electricity generation. A schematic diagram of a parabolic trough solar
power plant is illustrated in Fig. 2. The solar field assembles of multiple
parabolic trough solar collectors. The parabolic trough collectors con-
sist of an array of curved mirrors placed inside each of the parabolic
troughs. The solar collectors are filled with heat transfer fluid (HTF),
such as molten salt and Therminol-VP, or with water in case of direct
steam generation systems. The solar collectors are arranged in a series
configuration known as loops and oriented in a North-South direction
in order to track the sun from East to West. Thermal energy storage
(TES) can be used with solar power plants to ensure continuity in
electricity production. Normally the capacity of thermal energy storage
is in the range of several hours in which it is filled with HTF during the
day and emptied after sunset to maintain electricity production even
after sunset. The thermal energy collected by the solar field is used by
the power block to generate steam by using a heat exchanger. The
power block normally used in solar power plants is a regenerative
Rankin cycle which uses a steam turbine generator to produce electrical
energy. These systems have the flexibility to integrate with other con-
ventional or renewable energy systems [3,24,25]
4.2. Linear Fresnel reflector system
The general configuration of a linear Fresnel power plant is quite
similar to that in parabolic trough plants. The main difference between
them is the solar collectors used in the solar field. A linear Fresnel
Reflector (LFR) consists of an array of linear or curved mirror strips,
behaving as a Fresnel lens, which concentrates solar radiation on to a
fixed receiver mounted on the top, see Fig. 3. Secondary concentrator
can be used with these systems to increase the concentration ratio.
Consequently, the collected thermal energy is then used to operate the
conventional power cycle. The main advantage of this technology is the
simplicity and the low cost of its components [2,24,26].
4.3. Solar tower system
This system is also called ''central receiver technology''. The solar
field consists of a number of circular two axis tracking arrays. Each
array is a number of flat or slightly bent heliostats. The heliostat is
assembled of a large number of sun-tracking mirrors, which concentrate
B. Belgasim et al.
Table 1
Future of electricity generation and infrastructure expansion [20].
Plant Name
Projects Under Construction Misurata Combined Cycle Power Plant
I or gas, and heated to high temperature, up to 1000 °C. The dish re-
Benghazi North Combined Cycle
Power Plant I
West Sarir Gas Power Plant
Extension of West Mountain Gas
Power Plant
Zwetina Power Plant
Gulf steam Power Plant
Contracted Projects Ubari Gas Power Plant
Tripoli West Steam Power Plant
Proposed Projects Bumba Gulf Power Plant
Misurata Combined Cycle Power Plant
II
Militah Power Plant
Tripoli East Power Plant
Zwetina Power Plant II
Abutraba Power Plant
Table 2
National renewable energy plan for Libya [21].
Renewable Energy Targets
National Plan for Renewable Wind PV CSP Total
Energy MW
260 124 0 384
600 344 125 1069
1000 844 375 2219
solar radiation on a central receiver to produce heat with a high tem-
perature. The central receivers are classified into volumetric, cavity,
particle and external receivers. The working temperature of these sys-
tems reaches to 800 °C in which sunlight can be concentrated 600–1000
times. A schematic diagram of a solar tower power plant is shown in
Fig. 4. The high temperature achieved by this technology gives it the
flexibility to drive different types of power cycles including steam
Rankine and Brayton cycles. These systems can also be integrated with
TES systems to continue generate energy after sun set [1,22,24,27]
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15
Fig. 1. Electric peak load development.
4.4. Parabolic dish systems
The parabolic dish reflector is a two axis point-focus system which
Capacity
concentrates solar energy onto a receiver attached to the focal point of
690 MW the dish, Fig. 5. The focal receiver is filled with HTF, in this system fluid
690 MW
flector is attached to a Stirling engine or gas turbine to convert the
690 MW absorbed heat energy to electricity. This technology is available only in
260 MW demonstration prototypes and there is no commercial projects because
the electricity generated is expensive [2,26,28].
690 MW
1400 MW
600 MW 4.5. Comparison of CSP technologies
1400 MW
1400 MW A comparison between different CSP systems is reported in Table 3.
690 MW
Parabolic trough and linear Fresnel systems have a relatively lower
1200 MW concentration ratio while solar tower systems show an intermediate
1400 MW concentration ratio in the range of 300–1000, and parabolic dish sys-
690 MW tems have the highest concentration ratio of 1000–3000. Parabolic
700 MW
trough, linear Fresnel, and solar tower systems are suitable for power
generation capacities in the range of 10–200 MW, whereas the para-
bolic dish systems are recommended for lower generation capacity
between 0.01 and 0.4 MW. The annual solar to electric conversion ef-
ficiency for parabolic trough and linear Fresnel systems is lower than
solar tower and parabolic dish systems. In terms of cost, parabolic dish
Target Date
systems have the highest cost in both capital and running while linear
% Fresnel systems represent the cheapest technology. Parabolic trough
3 2015 systems can be integrated with direct and indirect two tanks molten salt
7 2020 TES systems. The direct two tanks systems are suitable also for central
10 2025
tower plants while pressurised steam storage is used with the Linear
Fresnel. Thermal storage systems with parabolic dish are not suitable
right now and still under development [2,23,29,30].
5. Assessment of site parameters
There are many technical and economical issues related to the site
of the CSP plants. The main site parameters which are required to ex-
amine the potential of CSP systems in Libya are investigated in this
section.
5.1. Solar energy resources
Libya's location and solar radiation resources are highly
3
B. Belgasim et al.
Fig. 2. Schematic diagram parabolic trough solar power plant.
encouraging for the utilization of solar energy. Libya is situated in the
centre of North Africa between latitudes 19–34° North and longitudes
9–26° East. Most of the country is located in the heart of the Sunbelt and
around 88% of Libya's land area is Desert. Libya is almost entirely
composed of the Sahara Desert. It is situated between longitude 11° 44′
to 23° 58′ East and a latitude range of 24° 17′ through to 30° 3′ North
[16,31].
The country is classified as wealthy with respect to solar radiation
resources. The distribution map of the average annual Global
Horizontal Irradiation (GHI) and the Direct Normal Irradiation (DNI)
across the country are illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7 respectively. These
data were recorded and averaged during the period of 1994 – 2010 by
SolarGIS [32]. It can be observed that, the average annual GHI is in the
range of 2000 kWh/m2/year in the Northern regions and over 2600
kWh/m2/year in the Southern regions. On the other hand, the average
annual DNI is varies between about 1900 kWh/m2/year in the coastal
region and 2500 kWh/m2/year in the South [32,33].
In addition, information about the insolation sky clearness index
Fig. 3. Linear Fresnel reflector solar power plant.
4
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15
and average number of sunshine hours is presented by the NASA
Surface Meteorology and Solar Energy database. The monthly average
sky clearness index for ten different locations in Libya is demonstrated
in Fig. 8. The Al-Kufrah site has the maximum clearness index of 0.68
and the minimum at Tripoli of 0.57. Also, the average number of sun-
shine hours across the country is more than 3500 h per year [33,34].
CSP plants can be considered economically valuable only for loca-
tions with DNI above 1800 kWh/m2/year [3,35]. Based on this fact, the
CSP technology can be a very promising choice for electricity genera-
tion in Libya depending on the intensity and quality of solar radiation
available.
5.2. Land use and land cover
In addition to solar resources, land and site selection plays an im-
portant role in the implementation of CSP technologies. CSP plants
require approximately 20,234 m2 per 1 MW of electricity production
and even more for plants with thermal storage [35]. Furthermore, the
B. Belgasim et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15

Fig. 4. Schematic diagram of a solar tower power plant.

or less is the most economical. Land inclination up to 3% is still ac-

Fig. 5. Parabolic dish system.
areas which have a high quality of agriculture or residential use should
not be considered for CSP development. As a result, deserts and remote
regions represent the most suitable sites for the establishment of CSP
sites [6,37]. Site surface inclination represents another significant
characteristic in land investigation. Land with overall inclination of 1%
ceptable but will increase the cost of the plant [38].
The vast majority of Libyan population is concentrated on the
coastline in the North. Fig. 9 demonstrates the population density dis-
tribution (person per km2). It can be observed that the highly populated
areas are distributed on the far North West and North East with a
density of more than 500 persons/km2. This concentration is around the
two big cities of Tripoli and Benghazi respectively. The rest of the
country has very low population and residential density, less than 1
person/km2, which can be considered as one of the lowest population
densities in Africa. This area is located in the Sahara desert and is of
poor quality of agricultural use as well [11,39].
By investigating the geographic details of the country, it can be
noticed that there are three mountainous regions. The main mountains
in these regions are shown in Fig. 10 namely Al Akhdar, Nafusah, Ti-
besti, Uweinat and Haruj. Generally, these regions are located in the
North East, North West and South, South East and Middle respectively.
Apart of these places, the average inclination of the country surface
stays within the recommended value of 3% [39].
It can be concluded that land availability and topography will not be
a restriction to develop CSP technology in Libya in the future. However,
not all desert lands are suitable as other factors including soil quality
and existence of dust need to be considered for further examination.

Table 3
Comparison of different CSP systems [2,23,29,30].

Feature parameter Unit Parabolic trough Linear Fresnel Solar tower Parabolic dish

Capacity range MW 10–200 10–200 10–200 0.01–0.4

Concentration ratio – 70–80 25–100 300–1000 1000–3000
Tracking system – Single-axis Single-axis Two-axis Two-axis
Operating temperature °C 290–390 250–390 250–500 250–700
Power cycle – Steam and organic Rankine Steam and organic Rankine Steam Rankine and Brayton Steam Rankine, Brayton and
Stirling
Annual solar/electric efficiency % 15% 8–10% 20–35% 25–30%
Capital cost $/kw 3972 – > 4000 12,578
Capital cost $/m2 424 234 476 –
Operational & maintenance cost $/kwh 0.012–0.02 Low 0.034 0.21
Water consumption m3/MWh 3 (wet cooling) 0.3 (dry 3 (wet cooling) 0.2 (dry 2–3 (wet cooling) 0.25 (dry 0.05–0.1 (for mirror washing
cooling) cooling) cooling) only)
Land use km2/MW 0.025 0.008 0.036 0.011

5
B. Belgasim et al.
Fig. 6. Average global horizontal irradiation (GHI) in Libya [32].
5.3. Water resources
As well as conventional power plants, CSP power systems require a
water source for their operation. The water is needed mainly for cooling
the power cycle and replacing the heat transfer fluid in the direct steam
generation cycles. In addition, water is also required for solar filed
maintenance including mirror cleaning [40]. Existing CSP plants con-
sume water in a range of between 3 and 3.5 m3/kWh. The majority of
this amount, 95%, contributes to the cooling process while the rest is
consumed in mirror washing and as steam working fluid [41].
Even though water based cooling is considered the most efficient
cooling technology, dry cooling systems could also be used with cost
and efficiency punishment. Using dry cooling systems currently costs
about 3 times more than water based equipment. Furthermore, dry
systems consume more parasitic power leading to a decrease in the
overall efficiency of the plant. As a result, the cost of electrical energy
produced using dry cooling is at least 10% higher and may be more
[42].
Water recourses in Libya can be classified as conventional and non-
conventional recourses, Table 4. Conventional recourses include rain-
fall and groundwater aquifers. Average rainfall varies from more than
100 mm a year in the North in the coastal region to less than 10 mm a
year in the South. Some areas in the South are very dray with no rain at
all [43]. The main groundwater aquifers are Kufra, Sirt, Morzuk, Al-
Jaghbob and Gefarah aquifers distributed as in Fig. 11. The capacity of
groundwater aquifers is between 1800 million m3 in Kufra and Morzuk
and 250 million m3 in Gefarah with water salinity which varies from
0.2 to 5 g/l. Non-conventional water resources are accessible in treated
wastewater and desalination water production as describe in Table 4
[39,44,45].
6
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15
It can be concluded that water availability will not be a barrier in
the future development of CSP technology in Libya. In addition, there is
a good synergy in building a hybrid dual-purpose plant that uses solar
energy to produce both electric power and freshwater through a water
desalination process thus increasing the system's overall economic
viability.
5.4. Grid connections and supporting infrastructure
The national electric network is accessible to 99% of the population
and majority of the country's regions are connected to the electrical
grid. Most of the electric network is concentrated on the coast, where
most of the inhabitants live. The national electric grid consists of an
ultra high voltage capacity of 400 kV with a total circuit length of
442 km, and a high voltage transmission level of 220 kV with a total
circuit length 13,677 km. The sub transmission voltage level is 66 kV,
with a total circuit length of 13,973 km. The distribution network's
voltage level is 30 kV with a total circuit length of 6583 km. The electric
grid is interconnected with Egypt by a 220kv line and with Tunisia by
two 225kv lines but these two lines are currently out of service
[11,12,20]. Moreover, in 2010 the General Electric Company of Libya
(GECOL) conducted a techno-economic feasibility study to interconnect
the electric grid between Libya and Europe. The study objective is to
export 500–1000 MW by submarine power cable using a high-voltage
direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system. The cable
was designed to connect between Mellitah Oil & Gas Complex in the
North West of Libya and Sicily Island in the South of Italy. Advanced
steps were taken towards this project but it was interrupted by the
political uprising [18].
Heavy constructions and maintenance machinery of CSP plants
B. Belgasim et al.
Fig. 7. Average direct normal irradiation (DNI) in Libya [36].
Fig. 8. Monthly average insolation clearness index over various sites in Libya [33].
requires a suitable roads network and international ports during con-
struction and subsequent operations. The Libyan road network consists
of approximately of 83,000 km of roads of which 47,590 km are paved.
This network connects the majority of the country's regions with each
other and interconnects the country with all neighbouring countries. In
addition, Libya has more than 7 seaports distributed along the coastline
and more than 100 airports and runways throughout the country [46].
6. Simulation of CSP plant at the North of Libya
In order to evaluate the performance of a CSP plant, a 50 MW
parabolic trough plant is proposed to operate under the typical climate
conditions of North Libya. The 50 MW parabolic trough plant has been
chosen based on the fact that the parabolic trough is the most com-
mercial and mature CSP technology. In addition to that, most of these
7
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15
technologies have a capacity of 50 MW whether it is individual or
combined with other plants at the same location such as Andasol 1–3
and Extrsol 1–3 [47].
6.1. Site location and weather data
The southern part of the country has higher solar resources com-
pared with the northern coast. The typical northern weather of the
country has been chosen to analyse the performance of the CSP plant
because it gives an indication of the minimal performance expected
from this technology around the country. Therefore, increased perfor-
mance of the plant is expected as the plant site is moved toward the
South of the country. The site selected for conducting the study is
Tajoura city where the Centre for Solar Energy Research and Studies
(CSESR) is located (32°48′−13°24′). The city is located in a coastal
region nearly 20 km east of the capital of Libya, Tripoli.
The performance of CSP plants strongly depends on the meteor-
ological conditions at the specific location of the plant. For instance, the
direct solar irradiance DNI has a direct influence on the efficiency of the
CSP plant. Other environmental factors such as ambient temperature
and wind speed show an effect on heat losses from the different systems
of the CSP plant. The CSESR has a weather station installed at the
proposed site collecting solar radiation data and weather parameters.
Fig. 12 shows the main measuring facilities of the installed meteor-
ological station. The weather station has the following equipment:
• Kipp & Zonen “SOLYS 2” tow-axis sun tracker.
• Integrated global positioning system “GPS”.
• Kipp & Zonen pyranometers for solar radiation measurements
• Kipp & Zonen CSD 3 sunshine duration sensor.
B. Belgasim et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15

Fig. 9. Libya population density [39].

daily and yearly basis. Yearly data shows that the annual potential of
DNI is 1989.15 kWh/m2/year, whereas the global irradiance on hor-
izontal surface is 1963.78 kWh/m2. The annual global radiation on the
tilted surface at latitude angle is 2109.92 kWh/m2. The average yearly
diffuse to global radiation ratio indicates that the region enjoys a clear
sky most of the year of 27.7%. Annual sun shine is 3057 h, the average
ambient temperature is 20.68 °C, and the average wind speed is 3.19 m/
s
One representative week during the middle of each season was
chosen to analyse the weather conditions and their suitability to op-
erate CSP fields. These data are described in Figs. 13–17. The highest
potential of DNI was recorded in summer season at about 34.7% of the
total annual DNI potential, and the lowest season irradiance was re-
corded in winter at 15.95%. The maximum instantaneous value of DNI
was 981.2 W/m2 in winter and the average hourly maximum value was
973.63 W/m2 on the same day. In official statistics, the value of direct
normal radiation 700 W/m2 was used for nominal power from solar
thermal collectors. Therefore, the direct solar radiation has to be above
this value to operate the solar filed loops [47]. During the winter the
Fig. 10. Topography of Libya [39]. DNI exceeds the value of 700 W/m2 for nearly half of the season. In
spring and autumn the DNI reached the value of 800 W/m2 on most
Table 4 days. Summer season represents the most potential period of DNI about
Water resources in Libya [44]. 900 W/m2 for approximately of every day.
The surrounding ambient temperature of the recorded year showed
Source m3/year that the minimum instantaneous temperature was 4.7 °C, and the
Conventional water resources Average precipitation 56 mm/year
minimum average hourly value was 5.04 °C in winter. The highest re-
Total actual renewable water 0.6 × 109 corded instantaneous temperature was 45.6 °C in autumn, and the
resources average hourly value was 44.86 °C on the same day. The hottest season
Total dam capacity 385 × 106 was the summer with an average seasonal value of 27.24 °C and the
Non-conventional water Produced wastewater 546 × 106
coolest season was the winter with a value of 13.23 °C.
resources Treated wastewater 40 × 106
Desalination water produced 18 × 106 Wind speed is an important factor in designing and constructing CSP
plants, as well as the effect of sandstorms on erosion of reflectors. The
maximum wind speed recorded was 16 m/s in winter and the hourly
• Anemometers to measure wind speed and direction. average value was 10.63 m/s on the same day. The relatively windiest
• Hygrometer to measure relative humidity. season was spring with an average wind speed 3.42 m/s, and the least
• Temperature sensors to measure ambient temperature. windy season was the summer with an average wind speed 2.96 m/s.
• Pressure sensors to measure atmospheric pressure. Humidity is also an important factor in the operation of con-
centrating technology, the recoded data for the year shows that hu-
The weather data collected by the station was utilized for simulation midity is relatively high in the coastal area all over the year, spring is
in this study. The weather data is recorded and stored by a data logger the least humid season with an average value of 62.3%, and the highest
every 1 min for all parameters. The data was analysed on an hourly, value over the season was recorded in winter with 71.1%. 100% humid

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B. Belgasim et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15

Fig. 11. Water resources in Libya.

Fig. 12. Meteorological station installed at CSERS in Tajoura city.

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B. Belgasim et al.
Fig. 13. Main weather data of the middle week in winter season of Tajoura city.
air was recorded in all seasons.
It can be noticed from the meteorological data for the targeted site
that, the operation of a CSP plant would be satisfying during summer,
acceptable during spring and autumn while operation is minimal and
oscillating during winter.
6.2. Description of the proposed plant and method of simulation
The Andasol-1 parabolic trough plant located in Spain is used as a
reference plant in this study. The technical design parameters of
Andasol-1 are utilized for the proposed plant in Libya as shown in
Table 5. The solar field is based on Euro Trough ET150 solar collector.
The ET150 solar collectors are oriented in the North-South direction
with heat transfer fluid Dowtherm A with temperatures of 293 °C at
inlet and 393 °C at outlet [48].
The analysis of performance and economic feasibility of the pro-
posed plant has been conducted using System Advisor Model (SAM)
software. SAM was developed by the National Renewable Energy
Laboratory (NREL) and has the capability of simulate different renew-
able energy systems including parabolic trough power technology. In
addition, it can make cost estimations based on installation and
Fig. 14. main weather data of the middle week in autumn season of Tajoura city.
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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15
operating costs. More specifically, SAM uses the well-known package
TRNSYS as transient simulation code [49].
6.3. Simulation results of the proposed solar plant
This section discusses the variation of energy and power flows be-
tween different components of the proposed plant during operation.
Annual performance and three representative days of two seasons,
summer and winter, were chosen to explore the performance of the
plant. These two seasons represent the maximum and minimum solar
DNI which theoretically lead to the highest and lowest performance of
the plant. The types of energy flows considered at different stages of the
plant in this analysis are summarized as:
•Q dni is the total solar thermal power incident of the solar field
•Q field is the thermal power produced by the solar filed
•Q in is the cycle thermal power entering the power block
•Q st is the thermal energy inside thermal energy storage
•W net is the net electric energy produced by the plant
Fig. 18 describes the performance of the plant during three days of
B. Belgasim et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15

Fig. 15. main weather data of the middle week in spring season of Tajoura city.

the summer. The thermal solar energy incidents on the concentrators

Qdni is above the level of 350 MW between 9:00 and 16:00 and reaches
the maximum of 413.5 MW at midday. This amount disappeared after
sunset. The thermal energy produced by the solar filed Qfield reaches the
maximum amount of approximately 283.4 MW at nearly noon. The
amount of Qfield stays above the value of 250 MW for about 6 h from
9:00 until 15:00 and vanishes after sunset. The variation of thermal
energy stored Qst shows the difference between charging and discharge
periods inside the thermal energy storage. Qst is positive when the solar
field is charging thermal energy storage by the thermal energy. In op-
position, Qst is negative during the discharge of this amount of energy
to the power block to produce steam. The Qst varies between 150 MW
and − 150 MW in which the discharge lasts for about 7 h between
18:00–1:00 on the next day. The remaining period up to sunrise the
next day is covered by a backup fossil boiler with duration of about 5 h.
Thermal energy storage stabilizes the amount of energy entering the
power cycle Qin. The net electrical energy production Wnet starts at 8:00 Fig. 17. Relative humidity of four different seasons of the year.

with an amount above 47 MWe and stays stable until 1:00 the next day.
Then Wnet drops to about 27 MWe until it returns to full production (27 MWe).
after sunrise the next day. Generally, the plant produces electricity in During the winter, Fig. 19, the plant shows an intermittent and ir-
full load (47 MWe) for about 18 h and the remainder in average load regular performance. Even though the Qdni reaches the maximum value

Fig. 16. main weather data of the middle week in summer season of Tajoura city.

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B. Belgasim et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15

Table 5 6.4. Comparison between Andasol-1 and the proposed plant at Tajoura
Design parameters of the proposed parabolic trough power plant [48].
The proposed CSP plant at Tajoura was compared with the reference
Characteristics Value
plant Andasol-1 at Spain. The performance of Andasol-1 is reported in
Total plant capacity 50 MWe [47,50,51]. The total annual net electricity generated by Tajoura plant
Solar field aperture area 510,120 m2 is slightly higher than Andasol-1 in which the electricity generated from
Length of one collector 150 m
Tajoura is 175 GWhe/year while from Andasol-1 is 172 GWhe/year.
Aperture width of the collector 5.75 m
Optical efficiency 0.85 The monthly energy flow for both plants is illustrated in Fig. 22. It can
Number of loops 156 be noticed that the energy generated by Tajoura plant is more im-
Row spacing 15 m portant for the most of the year except during the three months of
HTF type Downtherm A February, August and September. The average thermal efficiency for
Absorber tube inner diameter 0.066 m
Tajoura and Andasol-1 are 47% and 40% respectively while the average
Absorber tube outer diameter 0.07 m
Design loop inlet temperature 293 °C overall efficiency are 17% and 13% respectively.
Design loop outlet temperature 393 °C Even though the total solar energy incident on Andasol-1 location is
Full load hours of TES 7.5 h higher than Tajoura site, the Tajoura plant shows better performance in
Storage fluid Molten salt
terms of energy produced and average efficiencies. In more detail, the
annual DNI at Tajoura is about 1990 W/m2/year and in Andasol-1 lo-
of about 430 MW around the noon, it has a significant value, above cation it is nearly 2033 W/m2/year. The reasons behind this fact are the
350 MW, for a relatively short time of about 5 h. Combined factors in- average ambient temperature in Tajoura of 20.3 °C which is higher than
cluding low ambient temperature, high wind speed, low solar incident Andasol-1 site 14.9 °C. Moreover, the average wind speed at Tajoura is
angle in this season and intermittent in the Qdni leads to a significant lower than Andasol-1 where the average speeds are 3.7 m/s and 6.7 m/s
reduction in the thermal energy produced by the solar filed Qfield which respectively. This weather condition leads to heat losses in Andasol-1
does not exceed 150 MW for most the season. In addition, there is not which are higher than Tajoura by about 7%
enough thermal energy to be stored Qst which restricts the plant to
generation of electricity after sunset. The net electricity generation Wnet
7. Economic analyses
is limited only during the day time for a period of not more than 6–7 h.
During this period the Wnet reaches its peak only few times and the
The objective of the economic study is to investigate the profit-
average production is about 25 MW.
ability of CSP projects regardless of their financing system. This gives
Monthly net electric power produced by the proposed plant is de-
the authorities an overall idea about the limitations and risks of these
scribed in Fig. 20. This energy, which is ready to be uploaded on the
projects to enable them to plan for their CSP projects in a more safe and
grid, reaches the maximum during summer season. Monthly electric
accurate way.
production exceeds the value of 10 GWh for seven months from March
This study adopts the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) method. This
to September. The minimum production occurred during the winter
method is one of the most common techniques to evaluate the economic
months of not more than 5 GWh due to the reasons described previously
situation of an electric energy generation project. The LCOE calculates
and also because the low sun elevation angle received by single-axis
the cost of electricity produced during the whole lifetime of the CSP
tracking of parabolic trough configuration.
plants. It takes into account different factors including total electricity
Energy and power flows through the plant are not the only para-
produced, capital cost, operation & maintenance costs, backup fuel
meter to evaluate plant performance. CSP plant efficiencies are also an
consumed, discount rate and degradation factor. The economic para-
important parameter. The different types of proposed plant efficiencies
meters used in this study are equivalent to the values published for
through the year are described in Fig. 21. The average thermal and
neighbor and similar countries (Tunisia, Egypt and Libya) [18,47,52]
overall efficiencies of the plant are 48% and 17.5% respectively. These
for CSP and conventional power plants. The energy system cost is based
two efficiencies vary from minimum during winter season due to the
on direct costs which include the solar field, thermal energy storage and
significant increase in losses and reach maximum in summer supported
power block. As well as indirect costs including engineering, design,
by the high potential of solar DNI radiation. The power cycle efficiency
construction and land area [53,54].
has a slight variation between summer and winter and the average
The LCOE of the proposed CSP plant at Tajoura was calculated to be
value is 36%. The relative stability in the power cycle efficiency due to
24 $/kWh. The total installation cost estimated per net capacity was 8.3
the losses in the power cycle is relatively independent of the weather
thousands $/kW with an absolute amount of about 412 million US
condition variation through the year.
dollars. Total direct costs represent 87% of the total investments on the
other hand indirect costs, including land and owner costs, represent

Fig. 18. The energy flow at various stages of the solar plant during three representative days from summer.

12
B. Belgasim et al.
Fig. 19. The energy flow at various stages of the solar plant during three representative days of winter.
Fig. 20. Monthly electrical net power generated from the proposed plant.
Fig. 21. Overall, thermal and cycle efficiencies of the proposed plant.
Fig. 22. Comparison between net energy generated for Andasol-1 and Tajoura.
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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 90 (2018) 1–15
Fig. 23. The relative contribution of different parts of the proposed plant on the total cost
of the energy output.
only 13% of the total investment. In addition, annual water consump-
tion of the plant is about 678 thousands m3/year. This amount is used
mainly for power cycle cooling and mirrors washing.
Fig. 23 illustrates the relative contribution of different parts of the
proposed plant on the total cost of the energy output. It can be notice
that the biggest contribution, 33% of the cost, comes from installation
of the solar field including labour and equipment. The second major
part of the cost is expensed on the installation of the thermal energy
storage system. Indirect costs represent about 13% while the power
block is 11%. Compared with southern Europe and the USA, Libya has
the advantage of the availability and low price of the land where the
majority of land is arid and remote. On the other hand, most of the CSP
equipment need to be imported which increases the costs of transpor-
tation and installation. In addition, there is no legislations from Libyan
governments, right now, to give encouragement for Low CO2 emission
and friendly environmental projects such as CSP plants.
In order to enhance the economic competitiveness of CSP projects in
Libya further steps are required. Government subsidization for the fossil
fuel and for electricity should be reduced to increase the profitability of
the CSP projects. Plant components, especially in the solar field, such as
collector structures, mirrors and thermal storage should be manu-
factured locally to reduce transportation and importation costs in ad-
dition to the enhancing local industry and creating more jobs for the
local community.
8. Conclusions
Considering the issue of the environmental impact of using fossil
fuels and the increasing demand of electricity, renewable energy,
especially, solar energy is gaining more attention in Libya. This paper
has investigated the potential of using CSP technologies for electric
B. Belgasim et al.
energy generation in Libya. The potential has been estimated after re-
viewing the socio-economic and energy situation in the country taking
into account a description of the different CSP systems. A detailed as-
sessment of site parameters, such as solar potential and land topo-
graphy, has also been investigated. In addition, the potential of CSP has
also been analysed based on an investigation of a thermo-economic
performance of a 50 MW parabolic trough CSP plant. The simulation
has been conducted based on a real weather data recorded by a me-
teorological station installed in Tajoura city and compared with the
reference plant Andasol-1 constructed in Spain.
Even though the proposed plant located in the North coast of the
country in which the solar DNI is at its lowest potential, this study has
not only shown encouraging results in terms of deploying CSP plants for
power generation, but also presented that this technology is a candidate
to be economically competitive. In order to achieve the economic
competitiveness, a part of the plant components such as collector
structures, mirrors and storage systems should be manufactured in the
local market to reduce installation and operation costs. Such results can
be considered a good indication for Libyan governments to turn to in-
vest in these types of solar technologies to satisfy the continuing in-
crease in energy demand and to reduce its dependency on conventional
resources of energy.
Based on total electricity production and reviewed government re-
ports, CSP technology has not been considered compared with other
conventional and renewable energy sources which means that the
country needs more effort and support from the Libyan government in
order to bring this technology to the local market.
Acknowledgment
The authors would like to thank the General Electric Company of
Libya and General Information Authority of Libya for providing the
information of electricity demand and information maps of the country
respectively.
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