A novel approach to sustainable Power System Expansion planning with inclusion of Renewable Energy

The importance of Renewable Generation for sustainable growth must be recognized in Power System Expansion Studies. Inclusion of renewable energy generation in Power System Expansion ensures decreased dependency on fossil fuels in future. In this direction, we have developed a method for planning studies, by incorporating the selection of renewable energy generators, primarily wind and solar. The problem considered is a novel one and extensive literature is not available for the same. Thus, implementing the concept of inclusion of renewables in expansion studies is a great challenge. In this paper, wind and solar generators are defined similar to the conventional ones, to bring them to a common base. A constraint Emission Rate (ER) is introduced to ensure inclusion of renewable technologies with high costs and low Capacity Utilization Factor (CUF) in the expansion plan. This constraint guarantees a certain percentage of Renewables in the generation addition during expansion. Single Stage Multi-State Power System Expansion with Renewable Energy Inclusion was attempted using Genetic Algorithm. The authenticity of the solution obtained for inclusion of renewables during planning is ascertained by conducting a consistency check for an obvious case. Expansion studies for different percentages of renewable penetration are carried out and the results are compared. Matlab R2010a is used for the purpose of implementation.