New principles of operating electrical distribution networks with a high degree of decentralized generation

The increasing share of decentralized small and medium power plants opens up interesting options for a paradigmatic change of network operation strategies. On the one hand fluctuating generation principally endanger robust network operation. On the other hand there is an economic and ecological pressure to maximize the infeed of renewable energy sources. There is therefore a need for a cheap and scalable solution to meet these challenges. The solution we propose requires more decision intelligence and communication between the players in the electrical network. Scalability is achieved if the central control task is distributed among the intelligent players. Optimization of the control problem then means to devise a set of roles for the players and rules among them. We present such a basic set of roles and rules. We discuss the self-organization that occurs on the basis of these rules, the system performance as well as the consequences for the evolution of present-day strategies of network operation.