Off-stream Pumped Storage Hydropower plant to increase renewable energy penetration in Santiago Island, Cape Verde

Abstract

In order to reduce the high dependence on imported fuels and to meet the ongoing growth of electricity demand, Cape Verde government set the goal to increase renewable energy penetration in Santiago Island until 2020. To help maximize renewable energy penetration, an off-stream Pumped Storage Hydropower (PSH) plant will be installed in Santiago, in one of the following locations: Chã Gonçalves, Mato Sancho and Ribeira dos Picos. This paper summarizes the studies carried out to find the optimal location and connection point of the PSH plant in Santiago’s electricity network. This goal was achieved by assessing the impact of the PSH plant, in each location, on power system stability. The simulation tool PSS/E of Siemens was used to study the steady-state and dynamic behavior of the future (2020) Santiago MV grid. Different scenarios of demand and renewable resources were created. Each hydro unit of the PSH plant was modeled as an adjustable speed reversible turbine employing a DFIM. The results show that Santiago’s grid with the PSH plant in Chã Gonçalves is the one that has the best performance.