Study on reliability improvement possibilities assuming probabilistic wind generation

Wind power integration and economics is important topic for stakeholders, end users and regulatory institutions. New approaches for estimation customer costs of utility and reliability that takes into account time-variable loads and outage costs are proposed and illustrated in the paper. The developed approaches were implemented in case studies using information about wind resource in Latvia. In the case study there have been estimated changes of reliability level for customers due to wind generation installation, and due to some other reliability improvement activities related with usage of different types of power lines. Changes of reliability level affect customer costs of reliability. Analysing positive effect of wind generators on network reliability and on reduction of customer costs of reliability, there has been also taken into account economic benefit that get household users by installing wind generators - such users don´t pay for electricity produced by wind generator.