The difficulties of connecting renewable generation into utility networks

This paper discusses in general terms the problems that are encountered by the developers of renewable energy projects and by utility grids when dealing with projects to connect such generators to utility networks. Apart from the technical problems due to design of the network, other areas which cause difficulty include the regulatory framework which has been put in place during the opening up of the electricity markets and the challenge of arranging project finance in an environment which is new to investors and may be perceived as still under development.