The operation of a distribution company under uncertainty: An overview

Despite growing research interest in evaluating optimal decisions for a load-serving entity (LSE), the literature contains only a few studies that deal with the task of determining strategic power purchases for a distribution company, a retailer, or even a large customer. The scope of this paper is limited to a discussion of the incorporation of distributed generation (DG) units into a company´s operation, the power management problems that result, and the behaviour of these units as an added cause of uncertainty. This paper thus presents a detailed review of previous work that evaluates the optimum operational decisions of an LSE in which DG units are incorporated. Categorizing the literature based on the techniques applied and grouping the DG units according to their ownership and size highlights a research area that requires considerable investigation.