Renewable Integration in Island Electricity Systems – A System Dynamics Assessment

Island electricity systems tend to rely heavily on the use of fossil fuels for the everyday supply of customer needs, so there are both significant economic and environmental benefits from the decarbonisation of these systems. One such key global environmental benefit is the anticipated reduction in CO2 emissions and its associated effects on climate change. In recognition, many islands are already pursuing ambitious goals for renewable energy sources integration. The resulting effects of policy on the long-term investment decisions however, need to be better understood. This paper presents a system dynamics simulation model which evaluates the adoption and diffusion of renewable generation sources within an existing island electricity system. In particular, renewable sources within the Azorean island of São Miguel are considered, with findings revealing that the requisite long-term investments are framed by the local experience of the renewable technologies and the pursuit of further renewable integration policy targets

A dynamic simulation of low-carbon policy influences on endogenous electricity demand in an isolated island system

This paper considers the dynamics of electricity demand in response to changes arising from low-carbon policies and socio-economic developments. As part of an investigation into the evolution of such systems on small economically-developed islands, endogenous electricity demand and associated policies are studied for the Azorean island of São Miguel. A comprehensive System Dynamics (SD) model covering the period 2005 − 2050 is presented which captures both historical behaviours and real-world influences on the endogenous demand dynamics of an island-based electricity system. The impact of tourism, energy efficiency and electric vehicles (EV) expansion allied with associated policy options, are critically evaluated by the SD model using a series of scenarios. The model shows that energy efficiency measures exhibit the most significant long-term impact on electricity demand, while in contrast, policies to increase tourism have a much less direct impact and EV expansion has thought-provoking impacts on the long-term demand, although this is not as influential as energy efficiency measures

Development of a simulation-based decision support tool for renewable energy integration and demand-supply matching

This paper describes a simulation-based decision support tool, MERIT, which has been developed to assist in the assessment of renewable energy systems by focusing on the degree of match achievable between energy demand and supply. Models are described for the prediction of the performance of PV, wind and battery technologies. These models are based on manufacturers' specifications, location-related parameters and hourly weather data. The means of appraising the quality of match is outlined and examples are given of the application of the tool at the individual building and community levels

A review of microgrid development in the United States – A decade of progress on policies, demonstrations, controls, and software tools

Microgrids have become increasingly popular in the United States. Supported by favorable federal and local policies, microgrid projects can provide greater energy stability and resilience within a project site or community. This paper reviews major federal, state, and utility-level policies driving microgrid development in the United States. Representative U.S. demonstration projects are selected and their technical characteristics and non-technical features are introduced. The paper discusses trends in the technology development of microgrid systems as well as microgrid control methods and interactions within the electricity market. Software tools for microgrid design, planning, and performance analysis are illustrated with each tool's core capability. Finally, the paper summarizes the successes and lessons learned during the recent expansion of the U.S. microgrid industry that may serve as a reference for other countries developing their own microgrid industries

Renewable electricity generation and transmission network developments in light of public opposition: Insights from Ireland. ESRI Working Paper No. 653 March 2020

This paper analyses how people’s attitudes towards onshore wind power and overhead transmission lines affect the costoptimal development of electricity generation mixes, under a high renewable energy policy. For that purpose, we use a power systems generation and transmission expansion planning model, combined with information on public attitudes towards energy infrastructure on the island of Ireland. Overall, households have a positive attitude towards onshore wind power but their willingness to accept wind farms near their homes tends to be low. Opposition to overhead transmission lines is even greater. This can lead to a substantial increase in the costs of expanding the power system. In the Irish case, costs escalate by more than 4.3% when public opposition is factored into the constrained optimisation of power generation and grid expansion planning across the island. This is mainly driven by the compounded effects of higher capacity investments in more expensive technologies such as offshore wind and solar photovoltaic to compensate for lower levels of onshore wind generation and grid reinforcements. The results also reveal the effect of public opposition on the value of onshore wind, via shadow prices. The higher the level of public opposition, the higher the shadow value of onshore wind. And, this starkly differs across regions: regions with more wind resource or closest to major demand centres have the highest shadow prices. The shadow costs can guide policy makers when designing incentive mechanisms to garner public support for onshore wind installations

Impact of different time series aggregation methods on optimal energy system design

Modelling renewable energy systems is a computationally-demanding task due to the high fluctuation of supply and demand time series. To reduce the scale of these, this paper discusses different methods for their aggregation into typical periods. Each aggregation method is applied to a different type of energy system model, making the methods fairly incomparable. To overcome this, the different aggregation methods are first extended so that they can be applied to all types of multidimensional time series and then compared by applying them to different energy system configurations and analyzing their impact on the cost optimal design. It was found that regardless of the method, time series aggregation allows for significantly reduced computational resources. Nevertheless, averaged values lead to underestimation of the real system cost in comparison to the use of representative periods from the original time series. The aggregation method itself, e.g. k means clustering, plays a minor role. More significant is the system considered: Energy systems utilizing centralized resources require fewer typical periods for a feasible system design in comparison to systems with a higher share of renewable feed-in. Furthermore, for energy systems based on seasonal storage, currently existing models integration of typical periods is not suitable

Ocean Energy in Belgium - 2019

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A comprehensive review of electricity storage applications in island systems

Electricity storage is crucial for power systems to achieve higher levels of renewable energy penetration. This is especially significant for non-interconnected island (NII) systems, which are electrically isolated and vulnerable to the fluctuations of intermittent renewable generation. This paper comprehensively reviews existing literature on electricity storage in island systems, documenting relevant storage applications worldwide and emphasizing the role of storage in transitioning NII towards a fossil-fuel-independent electricity sector. On this topic, the literature review indicates that the implementation of storage is a prerequisite for attaining renewable penetration rates of over 50% due to the amplified requirements for system flexibility and renewable energy arbitrage. The analysis also identifies potential storage services and classifies applicable storage architectures for islands. Amongst the available storage designs, two have emerged as particularly important for further investigation; standalone, centrally managed storage stations and storage combined with renewables to form a hybrid plant that operates indivisibly in the market. For each design, the operating principles, remuneration schemes, investment feasibility, and applications discussed in the literature are presented in-depth, while possible implementation barriers are acknowledged. The literature on hybrid power plants mainly focuses on wind-powered pumped-hydro stations. However, recently, PV-powered battery-based hybrid plants have gained momentum due to the decreasing cost of Li-ion technology. On the other hand, standalone storage establishments rely heavily on battery technology and are mainly used to provide flexibility to the island grid. Nevertheless, these investments often suffer from insufficient remunerating frameworks, making it challenging for storage projects to be financially secure.Comment: 55 pages, 10 figure