The Potential of Solar Energy for Domestic and Commercial Buildings in Malaysia

Abstract

The rise in electricity consumption can affect global warming and climate change. Exploitation of solar energy is amongst the most sustainable and relatively cheap solution in Malaysia. It is imperative to study the potential of its application for domestic and commercial buildings. In this paper, financial viability of grid-connected solar photovoltaic (PV) system for domestic and commercial buildings is analysed using payback period and return on investment (ROI). The payback period and ROI are determined and compared based on Feed-in Tariff (FiT) and revised Net Energy Metering (NEM) schemes. Various scenarios and case studies were conducted using factors such as availability, installation, maintenance, and depreciation. It was found that domestic consumers i.e. homes with monthly electricity bills of RM2500 and RM5000 had the shortest payback period at 8.7 years for both schemes. For the commercial buildings with average bill of RM5003.43 the shortest payback period was 8.2 years for both schemes. The ROI of solar PV system installed for this commercial building were 155.03 % (FiT) and 203.65 % (revised NEM). Thus, solar PV system under FiT and revised NEM schemes would be financially viable for commercial buildings with monthly electricity bills of RM2500 and RM5000.