Consumer Tariffs Research Articles

Alternating direction method of multipliers based distributed energy scheduling of grid connected microgrid by considering the demand response

Global warming, environmental degradation, clean energy production, intermittent, volatile, and unpredictable renewable energy sources (RES’s), occasional peak demand on the system necessitates energy management (EM). Demand response (DR) programs in the distribution network can be seen as one of the foundation stones in the future of EM. This article illustrates the need for EM using DR, its benefits, types of loads, clustering techniques, price-based demand response (PBDR) etc. To accomplish the EM goals and to attain the economic benefit, DR employs peak shifting, peak clipping, valley filling and load growth. However, the accumulation of large loads at low electricity prices creates local peaks, this phenomenon is referred to as payback or rebound effect (RE). The occurrence of RE at low price zone heightens the volatility of market clearing price (MCP) and the operational cost of the microgrid. Inherently, the scheduled inelastic consumers at low price zone suffer from increased MCP and therefore, the total consumer tariff (TCT). The occurrence of RE depends on the load curve, peak to average ratio, electricity price and the percentage of interruptible loads present in the system. Unclear pricing methods impede the participation of customers in DR events. Moreover, majority of techniques presented in literature are of centralized frameworks that needs complex communication technologies. To fill these glitches the proposed work uses a simple distributed scheduling approach based on alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) to alleviate the energy management using an IEEE-18 bus system. The load factor increases from 0.79 to 0.83. Using DR lowers the peak power demand on the MG from 82 to 78 kW without compromising customer comfort or satisfaction. The TCT was lowered from scenario 1 to scenario 4 from 3058 to 2254 euros. The system's average demand dropped from 65.54 kW to 64.8 kW. IEEE-33 bus system was considered to assess the impact of RE on the MCP and TCT. Additionally, the marginal generator provides 72.51 kW of electricity in sub case 3 and 166.26 kW of power in sub case 2. Due to a decrease in power dispatch from the marginal generator, TCT increased from sub case 2 to sun case 3 by 11,046.41 rupees to 12,912.75 rupees. In contrast, TOC decreased from 6495.45 rupees to 6150.75 rupees from sub case 2 to sun case 3.

ОБОСНОВАНИЕ ПРИМЕНЕНИЯ ДИФФЕРЕНЦИРОВАННОГО СОЦИАЛЬНОГО ТАРИФА НА ЭЛЕКТРИЧЕСКУЮ ЭНЕРГИЮ ПРИ РЕАЛИЗАЦИИ ПРОЕКТА ЭЛЕКТРОСНАБЖЕНИЯ ОТ АВТОНОМНОЙ ГИБРИДНОЙ ЭНЕРГЕТИЧЕСКОЙ УСТАНОВКИ

The issue of uninterrupted power supply to remote settlements is relevant in many countries of the world, but especially in Russia. Modern autonomous hybrid power plants (AHPP), namely solar power plants (SPP), wind power plants (WPP) and other power plants using renewable energy sources (RES), combined with diesel electric power plants (DES), provide not only an increase in the amount of electricity generated, but, most importantly, they ensure uninterrupted power supply to consumers through a combination of renewable energy sources and covering the missing energy from diesel power plants. In the conditions of the northern areas of the Krasnoyarsk Region, this is especially important. ASPPs make it possible to reduce the cost of electrical energy by saving fuel consumption and budgetary subsidies for its supply to remote areas of the region. The purpose of the study was to substantiate the areas of application of autonomous hybrid power plants for the regions of the Far North with the possibility of establishing a differentiated social tariff for household consumers. To achieve the goal, load coverage graphs were constructed for Vanavara settlement; the parameters of the ASPP were studied for the conditions of Vanavara settlement; simulation of the operating modes of the ASPP was carried out; calculation of the main technical and economic indicators of the use of ASPP for power supply to Vanavara settlement was carried out; recommendations were given on rational areas of application of ASPPs with the possibility of applying special tariffs for the electricity they produce. The authors of the paper carried out a technical and economic assessment of ASUE in the Vanavara settlement with a capacity of 10 MW, including a solar power plant with a capacity of 2,5 MW. It was established that the cost of electrical energy in the first option when powered by diesel power plants is 36,75 rubles/kW.h. In the second option, the cost depends on the time of year and is 32,7 rubles/kW.h in winter, 11.6 in spring, 6.05 in summer, and 12,2 rubles/kW.h in autumn, which makes it possible to establish a differential social tariff for household consumers based on a lower cost in the summer in the amount of 7–9 rubles/kW.h.

Holistic analysis of consumer energy decarbonisation options and tariff effects

The consumers' perspective on low-carbon technologies is critical to decarbonise their emissions, the effect from the array of modern tariff structures and the dramatic variation in tariff rates on the technology viability is yet to be realised. Here we present a comprehensive holistic approach that includes electrification and hydrogen options to understand the trade-offs in technologies and tariffs for consumers in their energy decarbonisation which is missing from the technology specific analysis in the literature. The novel framework considers all consumer demands simultaneously through combinations of different low-carbon technologies over a 20-year lifetime, linked with conventional and emerging electricity tariff structures. Using the UK as a case study, we found that electrification is more cost-effective than hydrogen for most consumers to reduce their energy emissions and that the lowest 20-year low-carbon solution of air source heat pump, electric vehicle, and photovoltaics may have slightly (9%) higher lifetime cost to the gas boiler and petrol car baseline but can achieve 54% emission reduction using the grid electricity mix and energy tariffs in 2020. In terms of technologies, electric vehicles and solar photovoltaics are the only evaluated technologies that have the potential to reduce customer's energy costs, 8% and 0.2% respectively, alongside emissions reductions, of 28% and 2% respectively. Energy storage technologies, though significantly benefit the grid by unlocking demand-side flexibility, were not economic beneficial to customers until the tariff increase due to the energy crisis. Designing the average day rate of a tariff is most important for adopting electrified heating, on the other hand energy storage use requires low off-peak rates, where we quantified the minimum required difference in tariff peak to off-peak rates to allow energy storage financial justification. This learning can be used to help incentivise consumers to adopt these technologies, allowing greater system benefits.

Combating Rising Energy Poverty with Sunnah-Compliant Orthodox Sukuk Finance

There is a growing number of published peer-reviewed articles, government reports and investigations from civil societies reporting the poor performance of Public Private Partnerships (PPP)-provided utilities services. The purpose of this desk study is to explore the unreported connection between the source of financing for Public Private Partnerships (PPP) projects in the energy sector and the growing energy poverty across the globe. Energy poverty has become a growing threat to households in both developing and developed countries. Studies have shown that energy poverty results in poor health outcomes, discomfort, and poor economic and intellectual development. The causes of energy poverty have been attributed to rising energy prices, stagnated household incomes and poorly energy-efficient buildings. In response, there are growing calls in many countries for the re-nationalisation of energy companies. However, there is a dearth of studies exploring the connection between conventional interest-based debt finance used in financing PPPs which require tariffs to be designed to achieve cost recovery and overcome the growing energy poverty. Our intention is to show that beyond the private vs. public provision debate, there exists an unexplored third approach that mainstream experts seem to ignore or are oblivious about. We argue that the highly leveraged interest-based financing model currently used by PPP sponsors exacerbates energy poverty because of interest costs built into consumer tariffs. We argue that adopting orthodox non-interest equity-based sukuks as a medium of financing for energy PPPs will lead to a reduction in energy tariffs, and will enhance affordability, sustainability, value-for-money and reduce energy poverty. The emphasis on orthodoxy is derived from the fact that most of the current sukuks in the market violate the core concept of Islamic finance by promising a fixed return to investors.

Multicriteria Optimisation of the Structure of a Hybrid Power Supply System for a Single-Family Housing Estate in Poland, Taking into Account Different Electromobility Development Scenarios

This article focuses on determining the optimum structure for a hybrid generation and storage system designed to power a single-family housing estate, taking into account the different number of electric vehicles in use and an assumed level of self-consumption of the generated energy. In terms of generation, two generation sections—wind and solar—and a lithium-ion container storage system will be taken into account. With regards to energy consumption, household load curves, determined on the basis of the tariff for residential consumers and modified by a random disturbance, will be taken into account, as well as the processes for charging electric cars with AC chargers, with power outputs ranging between 3.6 and 22 kW. Analyses were carried out for three locations in Poland—the Baltic Sea coast (good wind conditions), the Lublin Uplands (the best insolation in Poland) and the Carpathian foothills (poor wind and insolation conditions). The mathematical and numerical model of the system and the MOPSO (multiobjective particle swarm optimisation) algorithm were implemented in the Matlab environment. The results include Pareto fronts (three optimisation criteria: minimisation of energy storage capacity, minimisation of energy exchanged with the power grid and maximisation of the self-consumption rate) for the indicated locations and three electromobility development scenarios with determined NPVs (net present values) for a 20-year lifetime. The detailed results relate to the inclusion of an additional expert criterion in the form of a coupled payback period of no more than 10 years, a maximum NPV in the last year of operation and a self-consumption rate of at least 80%. The economic calculations take into account the decrease in PV installation capacity as a function of the year of operation, as well as changes in electricity and petrol prices and variations in energy prices at purchase and sale.

Impacts of Tariffs on Energy Conscious Behavior with Respect to Household Attributes in Saudi Arabia

Historically, the combination of generous subsidies along with extreme climate has led to unsustainable domestic electricity consumption in Saudi Arabia. The residential sector constitutes a significant portion of this consumption. Amid the economic challenges, the country enforced a new electricity tariff for residential consumers in 2018. This study thus leverages change in 2018–2020 by collecting and analyzing the electricity consumption data of 73 households in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. The energy consumption is modeled based on the households’ attributes (e.g., dwelling type, ownership, number of residents, rooms, ventilation type, etc.) and applied tariffs using a machine learning technique. The extreme learning machine (ELM) is employed in solving the overfitting problem due to low-volume data. The correlation matrix is also constructed to determine the relationship between the household attributes. The ELM model developed in this study extracts the correlation between the input variables in determining energy consumption and also predicts the energy consumption related to low consumption data. The findings indicated that the electricity consumption between the pre-revised tariff year and the revised tariff enforcement year saw a reduction which was consistent in the subsequent years. This was also validated by the paired sample t-test, which showed a significant decrease in electricity consumption for the study period. The analysis also revealed that several household attributes had a relatively high impact on the reduction in the electricity consumption level following the revised tariffs, whereas the majority of the attributes had a moderate impact. In addition to these key findings, the demonstrated pathway adopted in this study is itself a methodological contribution that provides critical information about the sensitivity of the impacts of tariffs on energy consumption with respect to different household attributes. Economic factors being the critical stress need to be blended with existing energy consciousness for positive changes in favor of energy-saving behavior of the household members. The study does not attempt to represent the population of concern, but demonstrates a methodology that would help unleash inherent energy consciousness in favor of sustainable and energy-efficient behavior.

Markets of Electricity and Heat in the Russian Far East: 30 years of Transformation

The paper studies transformations in electricity and heat markets of the Russian Far East in 1980-2022. The timeline can be broken down into 4 periods of development in the region: pre-reform (1980-1991), economic reform (1992-1999), electricity market reform (2000-2011), and heat market and institutional reform (2012-2022). Development of electricity and heat markets happened during a period of demand and supply imbalance. High costs of energy supply, deficit of energy, and issues with fuel supply in the pre-reform period worsened in the next period. During economic reforms sharp drop in subsidies, rising costs of energy resources, non-payments for energy, lack of investments caused a massive energy crisis in the region despite sharp drop in demand. From the beginning of 2000s the economy started to recover, with demand of electricity growing. During electricity market reforms the Russian Far East was consolidating assets in electricity and heating industries, forming distinct market segments: non-price zone of wholesale market and retail markets of isolated energy systems. The 2000s continued to be plagued by issues of high deprecation of generators, lack of mass investments for modernization, and high energy prices for consumers. The latter required application of several measures after 2012: special decrees of the President and the Government of Russia to construct new electric power plants, modernize and construct CHP power plants; to provide ready infrastructure for residents of the advanced development territories, financed by the state; the state co-financing network infrastructure and connections for priority investment projects; bringing the tariffs for industrial consumers of certain territories of the region to the level of country average.

Formation of the territorial cost of electricity in the Russian Federation for the economic evaluation of HVAC systems

Comparison of various energy-saving technologies used in the systems of heat and gas supply, ventilation and thermal protection of the building is associated with the mandatory economic justification of the options under consideration (with and without energy-saving measures). According to the economic calculation, the cost of energy resources has the main influence on the profitability of the option. On the territory of the Russian Federation in various areas, for different categories of consumers, their own tariffs are set for the cost of energy resources. This article has collected, systematized and obtained data on the dynamics of changes in the cost of electricity for various tariffs for consumers equated to the population in various regions of the Russian Federation, which in the future simplifies the economic assessment of energy saving measures in DHW systems.

Planning the Development of Electricity Generating Capacity in a One-Zone Electric Power System with a High Share of Renewable Energy Sources

The article addresses matters concerned with planning the generating capacity in an electric power system with a high share of renewable energy sources. A stochastic nature of renewable energy sources (RES) makes them very different from conventional power plants. The RES power output depends on weather conditions, due to which some power system operators do not include them in the power balance. This leads to an excess of installed generating capacity in the electric power system and growth of electricity tariffs for consumers. Probabilistic assessments of system adequacy have shown that RES affect the power balance in the power system and do not require to be fully backed up by conventional generation. The article presents the results of calculating the system adequacy for a test IEEE scheme with different share and structure of renewable energy sources. It is shown that the effect of RES on the power balance is governed not only by the annual electricity output, but by the correlation between the RES power output and load curves. A large share of RES in a power system, entails the need to alter the requirements not only for the conventional generating capacities, but also for their structure. The article presents the results of optimizing the composition of generating equipment for different shares of RES in a power system. It has been shown that, if there are no RES in the power system, preference is given to less maneuverable, but cheaper generation units. With increasing the share of RES in the power system, so does the share of more expensive highly maneuverable units. A method of planning the generation capacity development for a single-zone power system is proposed. The value of the generation capacity margin has been determined based on the system adequacy calculation, and the mix of generating capacities is refined proceeding from optimization of the generating units loading.

Unrelated parallel machine energy-efficient scheduling considering sequence-dependent setup times and time-of-use electricity tariffs

Given that about half of the produced energy in the world is consumed in industries, there has been an increasing concern about optimizing energy consumption in manufacturing sectors. As one of the most effective ways, proper production scheduling to reduce energy consumption is of crucial importance among researchers and manufacturers. This paper addresses an unrelated parallel machine energy-efficient scheduling problem with sequence-dependent setup times by considering different energy consumption tariffs. The setup times are studied in two modes: disjointed from/jointed to processing time. For each one of these problems, two mixed-integer linear programming models have been formulated. The presented models for the problem with setup time disjointed from processing time can solve up to 16 machines and 45 jobs. In contrast, this capability is changed to 20 machines and 40 jobs for processing time jointed to the setup time problem. Furthermore, a fix and relax heuristic algorithm is presented for large-size instances, which can solve instances of up to 20 machines and 100 jobs for each of the two considered problems.

Nonlinear pricing, biased consumers, and regulatory policy

Recent empirical analyses show consumers in electricity and water markets respond to average price rather than marginal price, calling for information provision policies that help correct the consumers’ bias. This paper characterizes the regulated tariff if the regulator is informed about the average-price response of consumers. I find the regulated tariff for biased consumers promotes equity gains by featuring quantity premia and providing access to utility consumption for a larger population than in the world of rational consumers. The world of biased consumers can also yield higher total welfare. These results bring up the opportunity costs of the information provision programs that help consumers correct the bias.

Does Power Sector Reform Facilitate Informal Economy Development? A Study of Nigeria’s Experience in the Southeast Geopolitical Zone

This study examines the efficacy of the power sector reform in enhancing the development of the informal economy in the southeast geopolitical zone of Nigeria. It interrogates explicitly the effect of the unbundling of the electricity sector on job creation and livelihoods of the operators of the informal economy. Utilizing the mixed methods data approach and the Marxist theory of the postcolonial state, this study argues that the power sector reform is part of the grand strategy aimed at expanding capitalist penetration and protecting the economic interests of the advanced capitalist states. This self-serving interest of the capitalist institutions, which the power sector reform intends to protect explains the crisis in the power sector manifesting in poor electricity supply and increased tariffs for electricity consumers. Indeed, these untoward outcomes have negatively affected the development of the informal economy in southeast Nigeria. It, however, recommends a reevaluation of the market-based power sector reform in Nigeria.

LIBERALIZATION OF RELATIONS IN THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION HEAT SUPPLY FIELD: BACKGROUND, FIRST RESULTS AND TARIFF CONSEQUENCES

The paper considers prerequisites and consequences analysis of the relations in the heat supply field liberalization process of taking place in the Russian Federation. The article is dedicated to theoretical and practical background for liberalization, which determine the possibility and feasibility of a radical change in the system of relations between participants in the heat energy markets. The authors considered the current forms of using competition mechanisms in heat markets: competition between centralized and decentralized heat supply, competition between heat producers, competition for admission to market entry, quasi-competition based on incentive regulation. The article examines Russian instruments for liberalizing heat energy markets. The authors identified the features of the new (target) model of the heat energy market formation and changes in the spheres of responsibility of its individual subjects, including the strengthening of the institution of unified heat supply organizations. Separately, the authors assessed the price (tariff) consequences of the transition to pricing for thermal energy using the “no more expensive than alternative sources of heat” method. This method provides for setting a contractual price for heat energy not higher than a ceiling level that the regulator approves based on the cost of heat supply from an “alternative” heat source (boiler house). The authors investigated changes in prices (tariffs) for heat energy for consumers in municipalities pioneering the transition to price zones of heat supply. The article reveals that the establishment of a tariff by the "alternative boiler house" method did not effect to a sharp rise in prices (tariffs) for consumers. This is based on the application of measures provided for by legislation. In conclusion, the authors made recommendations on further expanding the composition of price zones for heat supply.

A time-of-use pricing model of the electricity market considering system flexibility

This paper presents a time-of-use (TOU) pricing model of the electricity market that can capture the interaction between power plants, generation ramping, storage devices, electric vehicle loading, and electricity prices. Even though the model is calibrated to Chinese Fujian electricity market, it can be used to predict efficient equilibrium tariffs on any electricity system that seeks to emphasize the marginal costs principle for generators where consumer tariffs are regulated. We show that, for efficiency purposes, it is imperative for dynamic electricity pricing models to take into account technology-specific ramping parameters and various sources of power system flexibility. Also, by utilizing unused battery capacity, electric vehicles can significantly complement other storage devices to reduce power sector emissions and ensure grid stability. The model and results presented in this paper are useful to regulatory bodies in Fujian province for economic policy, and to the scientific community in terms of (i) offering a tool to promote more discussion on dynamic pricing in electricity markets, and (ii) enriching our understanding of how to design a TOU program in the light of flexible power resources.

Analysis of Residential Consumers’ Attitudes Toward Electricity Tariff and Preferences for Time-of-Use Tariff in Korea

In recent years, a Time-of-Use (TOU) tariff for residential consumers has received much more attention with the increasing deployment of smart meters for residential consumers in Korea. The introduction of the TOU tariff for residential consumers is expected to allow residential consumers to have a choice of electricity rate plans in addition to load management. An analysis of residential consumers’ preferences for the TOU tariff is needed to identify TOU attributes’ levels. This paper analyzes Korean consumers’ attitudes toward current residential electricity tariff and preferences for TOU tariff using demographic characteristics collected by a face-to-face survey. Consumers’ preferences on key attributes of TOU tariff are analyzed using the conjoint analysis, and attitudes toward current residential electricity tariff are estimated by the multiple indicators multiple causes (MIMIC) model. The analysis results of this study show that based on their attitude toward electricity tariff, consumers’ attitudes can be divided into three latent variables, and preferences for TOU tariff are discrete by group rather than continuous by individual consumer.

IESR: Instant Energy Scheduling Recommendations for Cost Saving in Smart Homes

The exponential increase in energy demands continuously causes high price energy tariffs for domestic and commercial consumers. To overcome this problem, researchers strive to discover effective ways to reduce peak-hour energy demand through off-peak scheduling yielding low price energy tariffs. Efficient off-peak scheduling requires precise appliance profiling to identify a scheduling recommendation for peak load management. We propose a novel off-peak scheduling technique that provides instant energy scheduling recommendations by monitoring appliances in real-time following user-devised criteria. Once an appliance operates during a peak hour and fulfills the user criteria, a real-time scheduling recommendation is presented for users’ approval. The proposed technique utilizes appliance energy consumption data, user-devised criteria, and energy price signals to identify the recommendation points. The energy cost-saving performance of the proposed technique is evaluated using two publicly available real-world energy consumption datasets with four price signals. Simulation results show a significant cost-saving performance of up to 84% for the experimented datasets. Moreover, we formulate a novel evaluation metric to compare the performance of various off-peak scheduling techniques on similar criteria. Comparative analysis indicates that the proposed technique outperforms the existing methods.

PRICE DISCIMINATION IN THE ELECTRICITY MARKET OF UKRAINE

The article is devoted to the problem of price discrimination in the electricity market of Ukraine. The article reveals the essence and degree of price discrimination in the market of production, transmission and distribution of electricity. It is determined that electricity is a standardized product but has a number of features that significantly affect the formation of costs for its production. During the sale, electricity has several prices, which indicates monopoly in the market and the existence of price discrimination. It is analyzed that price discrimination allows market participants to receive higher profits, but for the use of the price discrimination system several important conditions must be fulfilled: concentration of market power; the possibility of differentiation of counterparties; impossibility of resale of goods. It is investigated that the electricity market of Ukraine is characterized by discriminatory pricing of the third degree to a greater extent, and the second – to a lesser extent. It was found that price discrimination concerning producers is represented by different generation of electricity and different purchase prices: thermal, hydro, nuclear, block stations, RES (renewable energy sources). Regarding consumer discrimination, the most common is price discrimination based on day and night prices – this is due to the specifics of electricity generation and consumption – during the day the load on the network is greater due to business, at night consumption falls, but most power plants can not stop generation, therefore, they reduce it to a minimum and still have an excess of electricity. Different electricity tariffs for household and non-household consumers provoke cross-subsidization. Cross-subsidization in electricity is understood as price discrimination: electricity tariffs for industrial and commercial consumers are set above the marginal cost, and for households – lower, so the former are forced to overpay and subsidize the latter. There is a separate price discrimination based on geographical location: for the population living in the 30-kilometer zone of nuclear power stations, distribution of electricity is supplied at a rate of 70 percent of the current tariff for the specific group of population. The consequences of price discrimination are analyzed. High tariffs for businesses translate into higher costs for the production of goods and, consequently, higher wholesale and retail prices for consumers. The social effect of subsidizing the sale of electricity prices for the population is thus largely graded. In our opinion, a number of measures, which have been proposed, are aimed at demonopolizing the electricity market in Ukraine and reducing the level of price discrimination.

A time of use tariff scheme for demand side management of residential energy consumers in Bangladesh

The aim of this paper is to develop a new Time of Use (TOU) tariff scheme for Demand Side Management (DSM) of residential consumers in Bangladesh. In this advanced era of technology, the requirement of electrical energy is continuously increasing. However, the overall growth of electricity generation is comparatively slower due to depletion of fuel sources. In this situation, a strategic plan needs to be implemented at consumer end to mitigate the energy crisis. As such, the concept of DSM is introduced where consumers can save electricity bills by changing their consumption pattern. It subsequently reduces the generation requirement during peak hours, which offers operational flexibility and financial benefits to utility. In the literature, DSM has been used in residential, commercial, and industrial sectors. However, the existing techniques do not explicitly consider the low-income consumers when TOU scheme is utilised. It may result in financial repercussion for these consumers. To overcome this challenge, a TOU scheme is proposed in this paper by ensuring financial benefits for all types of residential consumers and utility. To this end, an optimisation model is formulated by taking into account the various consumer groups such as low-income, middle-income and high-income. Two different meters (meter 1 and meter 2) are prudently allocated to these consumers. Using genetic algorithm technique, optimisation model is solved to provide electricity tariff and block sizes for various consumers under two meters. The proposed algorithm is applied to the residential inhabitants of a practical distribution system in Bangladesh. The results suggest that significant amount of annual savings can be achieved simultaneously by consumers and utility. The low-income consumers remain financially least affected while the proposed TOU tariff scheme is executed. In addition, the proposed TOU approach is compared to existing methods and found that optimisation based TOU outperforms the conventional ones.

A MILP framework for electricity tariff-choosing decision process in smart homes considering ‘Happy Hours’ tariffs

Nowadays, electricity end users can choose among a huge variety of different electricity plans on a deregulated energy market. The wide variety of tariffs besides the advent of novel agents like smart consumers and prosumers, are becoming the tariff-choosing process more complex. This paper proposes a MILP optimization framework which aims at facilitating this task. More precisely, the main endings of the developed framework are: (i) determine the most suitable tariff for smart consumers and prosumers based on historical consumption data, (ii) determine the optimal hours to be hired for a so-called ‘Happy hours’ tariff plan. In addition, other useful results can be directly obtained from the developed tool. The developed approach carries out a MILP optimization framework for optimal scheduling a series of flexible appliances through various characteristic days obtained from clustering historical collected data. This process is repeatedly executed for the different tariff options and, finally, the most attractive one is selected. A case study on the Spanish retail market for a benchmark prosumer environment is used for showing the capabilities of the developed framework.

Assessment of rational options for energy supply to remote consumers of the Arctic zone in the context of the development of renewable energy

The article deals with the problem of power supply of various types of consumers of electric energy in remote regions of Russia and the Arctic zone in the context of the intensification of the development of renewable energy. The article substantiates the position that in order to ensure sustainable and rational energy supply to the largest group of consumers - small remote settlements-it is advisable to consider a set of measures in three main areas: energy saving and improving the energy efficiency of consumers, electricity supply based on geographically accessible energy sources, including renewable ones. It is shown that the key indicator of the development of renewable energy technologies in the Arctic zone and remote regions is the level of economically justified reduction of the “northern import” of fuel in the zone of decentralized energy supply, as well as cross-subsidization of energy tariffs for consumers of different target groups.