Pumped-hydro storage plants influencing the optimal hourly dispatch in hydro-thermal systems with massive integration of variable renewable energy

The article evaluates the optimum economic hourly dispatch in hydro-thermal systems with massive integration of variable renewable energy, wind and solar. A linear optimization model, Elemod, makes feasible to analyze the power system operation with hourly time step, taking into account one year of planning horizon much larger than the weekly horizon that usually sets the hydro-thermal scheduling studies. It is proposed an alternative formulation for pumped-hydro storage, in a way that the total annual system cost is minimized with the co-optimization of the hourly PHS operation cost. To illustrate the methodology and modeling application, pre-senting a real system analysis, the Brazilian Hydro-thermal System was chosen to be simulated based on its planned capacity stepping into 2029. At the end, the paper shows the ability of PHS system to provide hourly capacity to the power system, as well as better allocate VRE generation and manage the bulk of transmission system usage. The cost reduction could be about 14 Million R$ of the total operation cost estimated for the 2029-power system capacity.

Automated summary

This article evaluates the optimal economic hourly dispatch in hydro-thermal systems with a large integration of variable renewable energy. A linear optimization model, Elemod, is used to analyze the power system operation on an hourly basis for a planning horizon of one year. The study proposes an alternative formulation for pumped-hydro storage to minimize the total annual system cost. The Brazilian Hydro-thermal System is simulated to demonstrate the methodology and modeling application, showing the ability of pumped-hydro storage to provide hourly capacity and optimize transmission system usage.