In this paper, an evolutionary technique applied to the optimal short-term scheduling (24 hours) of the electric energy production is presented. The equations that define the problem lead to a nonlinear mixed-integer programming problem with a high number of real and integer variables. Consequently, the resolution of the problem based on combinatorial methods is rather complex. The required heuristics, introduced to assure the feasibility of the constraints, are analyzed, along with a brief description of the proposed genetic algorithm. Finally, results from realistic cases based on the Spanish power system are reported, revealing the good performance of the proposed algorithm, taking into account the complexity and dimension of the problem
