A methodological approach for assessing flexibility and capacity value in renewable-dominated power systems: a Spanish case study in 2030

S. Huclin, A. Ramos, J.P. Chaves, J. Matanza, M. González-Eguino

Energy Vol. 285, pp. 129491-1 - 129491-12

Summary:

Maintaining the security of supply is one of the challenges that system operators face. Variability and uncertainty increase due to the penetration of variable renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, while flexible technologies such as traditional thermal units are phased out to reduce emissions. The current methods for assessing power system adequacy are based on historical operations and are generally intended to be applied to thermal-dominated electricity systems. Therefore, it is necessary to improve current adequacy assessment methods since they usually neglect the flexibility of power systems. This paper presents a methodological approach for jointly assessing the adequacy and flexibility of power systems. The methodology’s usefulness is demonstrated through its application to the Spanish power system. For the case study, results show that new closed-looped pumped storage hydro technology provides 25% flexibility while contributing to adequacy due to higher installed capacity and round-trip efficiency. Due to shorter storage duration, batteries only contribute to flexibility, supplying 16% of the total operating reserves. Therefore, this study shows that metrics of flexibility and individual contribution to the power system adequacy complement each other and simultaneously enable the scarcities of power systems to be observed.

Spanish layman's summary:

Los métodos actuales de evaluación de la firmeza, no tienen en cuenta la flexibilidad del sistema eléctrico. Este artículo presenta un método para evaluar conjuntamente la firmeza y la flexibilidad de los sistemas eléctricos. Los resultados muestran los papeles complementarios de los ESSs.

English layman's summary:

Current adequacy assessment methods, designed for thermal systems, neglect power system flexibility. This paper introduces a method to jointly evaluate adequacy and flexibility in power systems. Findings shows the complementary roles of ESSs. 

Keywords: Electricity; Security of supply; Variability; Critical periods; Storage

JCR Impact Factor and WoS quartile: 9,000 - Q1 (2022)

DOI reference: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2023.129491

Published on paper: December 2023.

Published on-line: October 2023.

Citation:
S. Huclin, A. Ramos, J.P. Chaves, J. Matanza, M. González-Eguino, A methodological approach for assessing flexibility and capacity value in renewable-dominated power systems: a Spanish case study in 2030. Energy. Vol. 285, pp. 129491-1 - 129491-12, December 2023. [Online: October 2023]