Assessment of wind energy potential in Niamey, Niger

Renewable technologies are considered as clean sources of energy and optimal use of these resources minimize environmental impacts, produce minimum secondary wastes and are sustainable based on current and future economic and societal needs. Renewable energy technologies provide an excellent opportunity for mitigation of greenhouse gas emission and reducing global warming through substituting conventional energy sources. In the Sahel of West Africa, dramatically affected by desertification processes and rainfall shortages, wind energy is often viewed as a technology to mitigate deforestation although its development is extremely limited. The purpose of this study is to assess wind power potential in Niamey, Niger, a country where forest areas have declined by 34.5% over the 1990-2005 period. From 3-hourly meteorological data collected at the Niamey-Airport synoptic station over ten years (1998-2007), we evaluate the wind speed characteristics and the wind power potential at a height of 10 meters above ground level at diurnal, monthly, and yearly scales. We find very large differences in wind speed at the diurnal (2.40 – 5.11 m/s), monthly (2.61 – 4.11 m/s) and yearly (3.21 – 3.73 m/s) scales, with a global average wind speed of 3.42 m/s. We conclude that the wind powered energy is not economically feasible in Niamey due to its low wind potential.