Solar photovoltaic energy applied to ferroalloy industry

Abstract The Brazilian ferroalloy industry faces a highly competitive scenario in the foreign market. Among the key factors to determine the price of its products, electric energy stands out as one of the main inputs. So, the possibility of energy being unavailable or having high prices causes a direct impact in the ferroalloy chain. On the other hand, the renewable energy market, especially the solar photovoltaic (SPV) energy shows extensive growth due to technological advances and recent regulation. Connecting both contexts, this study investigates a way to apply the great moment of the SPV energy sector to the ferroalloys industry. Firstly, the ferroalloy sector data was searched in order to develop a model of ferroalloy production by using the average data of production and electric energy consumption, called model-ferroalloy. So an SPV power plant was estimated to supply its electric energy demand. It was considered in four different scenarios according to current law and its economic viability verified. From these studies, the viability of implementing solar photovoltaic energy to ferroalloys industry was determined. The levelized cost of energy (LCOE) comparative shows that SPV energy has a lower price than conventional sources, no matter if it is in the free or regulated energy market. Furthermore, the necessary investment, according to the results found, has good attractiveness in the financial market point of view.