Hybrid Advanced Optimization Methods with Evolutionary Computation Techniques in Energy Forecasting

More accurate and precise energy demand forecasts are required when energy decisions are made in a competitive environment. Particularly in the Big Data era, forecasting models are always based on a complex function combination, and energy data are always complicated. Examples include seasonality, cyclicity, fluctuation, dynamic nonlinearity, and so on. These forecasting models have resulted in an over-reliance on the use of informal judgment and higher expenses when lacking the ability to determine data characteristics and patterns. The hybridization of optimization methods and superior evolutionary algorithms can provide important improvements via good parameter determinations in the optimization process, which is of great assistance to actions taken by energy decision-makers. This book aimed to attract researchers with an interest in the research areas described above. Specifically, it sought contributions to the development of any hybrid optimization methods (e.g., quadratic programming techniques, chaotic mapping, fuzzy inference theory, quantum computing, etc.) with advanced algorithms (e.g., genetic algorithms, ant colony optimization, particle swarm optimization algorithm, etc.) that have superior capabilities over the traditional optimization approaches to overcome some embedded drawbacks, and the application of these advanced hybrid approaches to significantly improve forecasting accuracy

A novel online LS-SVM approach for regression and classification

In this paper, a novel online least squares support vector machine approach is proposed for classification and regression problems. Gaussian kernel function is used due to its strong generalization capability. The contribution of the paper is twofold. As the first novelty, all parameters of the SVM including the kernel width parameter σ are trained simultaneously when a new sample arrives. Unscented Kalman filter is adopted to train the parameters since it avoids the sub-optimal solutions caused by linearization in contrast to extended Kalman filter. The second novelty is the variable size moving window by an intelligent update strategy for the support vector set. This provides that SVM model captures the dynamics of data quickly while not letting it become clumsy due to the big amount of useless or out-of-date support vector data. Simultaneous training of the kernel parameter by unscented Kalman filter and intelligent update of support vector set provide significant performance using small amount of support vector data for both classification and system identification application results. © 201

An Overview of Forecasting Methods for Monthly Electricity Consumption

Mid-term electricity consumption forecasting is analysed in this paper. Forecasting of electricity consumption is regression problem that can be defined as using previous consumption of an individual or a group with the goal of calculation of future consumption using some mathematical or statistical approach. The purpose of this prediction is multi beneficial to the stakeholders in the energy community, since this information can affect production, sales and supply. The Different methods are considered with the main goal to determine the best forecasting model. Considered methods include Box-Jenkins autoregressive integrated moving average models, state-space models and exponential smoothing, and machine learning methods including neural networks. An additional objective of the conducted research was to determine if modern methods like machine learning are equally precise in forecasting mid-term electricity consumption when compared to traditional time series methods. The performances of forecasting models are evaluated on the monthly electricity consumption data obtained using real billing software owned by the Distribution System Operator in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Mean absolute percentage error is selected as a measure of prediction accuracy of forecasting methods. Every forecasting method is implemented and tested using the R language, while data is collected from Data Warehouse in the form of total monthly consumption. The efficiency of presented solution will also be discussed after presentation of the results

Electricity Load Forecasting Using Support Vector Regression with Memetic Algorithms

Electricity load forecasting is an important issue that is widely explored and examined in power systems operation literature and commercial transactions in electricity markets literature as well. Among the existing forecasting models, support vector regression (SVR) has gained much attention. Considering the performance of SVR highly depends on its parameters; this study proposed a firefly algorithm (FA) based memetic algorithm (FA-MA) to appropriately determine the parameters of SVR forecasting model. In the proposed FA-MA algorithm, the FA algorithm is applied to explore the solution space, and the pattern search is used to conduct individual learning and thus enhance the exploitation of FA. Experimental results confirm that the proposed FA-MA based SVR model can not only yield more accurate forecasting results than the other four evolutionary algorithms based SVR models and three well-known forecasting models but also outperform the hybrid algorithms in the related existing literature

Multi-time-horizon Solar Forecasting Using Recurrent Neural Network

The non-stationarity characteristic of the solar power renders traditional point forecasting methods to be less useful due to large prediction errors. This results in increased uncertainties in the grid operation, thereby negatively affecting the reliability and increased cost of operation. This research paper proposes a unified architecture for multi-time-horizon predictions for short and long-term solar forecasting using Recurrent Neural Networks (RNN). The paper describes an end-to-end pipeline to implement the architecture along with the methods to test and validate the performance of the prediction model. The results demonstrate that the proposed method based on the unified architecture is effective for multi-horizon solar forecasting and achieves a lower root-mean-squared prediction error compared to the previous best-performing methods which use one model for each time-horizon. The proposed method enables multi-horizon forecasts with real-time inputs, which have a high potential for practical applications in the evolving smart grid.Comment: Accepted at: IEEE Energy Conversion Congress and Exposition (ECCE 2018), 7 pages, 5 figures, code available: sakshi-mishra.github.i

Forecasting methods in energy planning models

Energy planning models (EPMs) play an indispensable role in policy formulation and energy sector development. The forecasting of energy demand and supply is at the heart of an EPM. Different forecasting methods, from statistical to machine learning have been applied in the past. The selection of a forecasting method is mostly based on data availability and the objectives of the tool and planning exercise. We present a systematic and critical review of forecasting methods used in 483 EPMs. The methods were analyzed for forecasting accuracy; applicability for temporal and spatial predictions; and relevance to planning and policy objectives. Fifty different forecasting methods have been identified. Artificial neural network (ANN) is the most widely used method, which is applied in 40% of the reviewed EPMs. The other popular methods, in descending order, are: support vector machine (SVM), autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA), fuzzy logic (FL), linear regression (LR), genetic algorithm (GA), particle swarm optimization (PSO), grey prediction (GM) and autoregressive moving average (ARMA). In terms of accuracy, computational intelligence (CI) methods demonstrate better performance than that of the statistical ones, in particular for parameters with greater variability in the source data. However, hybrid methods yield better accuracy than that of the stand-alone ones. Statistical methods are useful for only short and medium range, while CI methods are preferable for all temporal forecasting ranges (short, medium and long). Based on objective, most EPMs focused on energy demand and load forecasting. In terms geographical coverage, the highest number of EPMs were developed on China. However, collectively, more models were established for the developed countries than the developing ones. Findings would benefit researchers and professionals in gaining an appreciation of the forecasting methods, and enable them to select appropriate method(s) to meet their needs