Integrating high penetration renewable generation into an electrical grid network

Abstract

While Australia's current electricity generation is primarily based on its vast coal and gas fossil fuel reserves, it is also rich in solar and wind renewable energy resources. If these energy sources can be used to replace fossil fuel to generate electricity, Australia's contribution to worldwide greenhouse gas emissions would be substantially reduced. However, a primarily renewable electrical generation system requires significant changes to the electrical grid design processes to manage the variable and highly distributed nature of renewable energy. This paper presents a methodology for integrating a high penetration of renewable generation into an electrical grid network. The approach uses system-wide historical load data to estimate the daily load requirements for local distribution regions, and then matches this load against the available renewable generation potential in the surrounding local geographical area. The target is to estimate the potential for this local renewable generation to meet local demand over a full 24 hour period, so that a minimum of interconnecting transmission lines and/or energy storage systems can be planned while still maintaining full supply reliability. Three case studies are presented to illustrate the proposed grid design strategy.