Analysis of the Features of Effective Implementation of Solar Power Plants in Local Energy Supply Systems

Abstract

It is shown that renewable energy sources (RES) are increasingly dominating the electricity market in many countries, while the amount of electricity generation by solar power plants (SPP) has been growing at a record pace in recent years. It is noted that although the share of RES continues to grow and the photovoltaic industry is developing rapidly, the industry still faces many challenges, in particular, how to continue to reduce the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE), improve the efficiency of operation and maintenance, and maintain the stability of the power grid, to ensure system security. The effective implementation of solar generation requires an analysis of the prospects for the development of local electric power systems that include SPP, the development of mechanisms and appropriate regulatory, methodological, technical and organizational support that will contribute to the effective development of solar generation, the construction of modern system (schematic) solutions.
 The analysis of the features of the development of green generation in Poland and Ukraine was carried out, the positive factors that influenced the development of renewable energy sources in Ukraine were determined, which made it possible to form the technical, economic and organizational conditions for the successful development of solar generation, in particular, information was provided on new players in developed energy markets according to the Fourth Energy EU package. The analysis showed that when increasing the efficiency of SPP systems, planning and demand management in the electric network, effective functioning of Energy Smart Community (ESC) become important.
 The basic components of the effective functioning of electric power systems with SPP are highlighted, namely: concepts of configurations of photovoltaic systems, Smart-inverters, Energy Storage System (ESS), formation of Virtual Power Plant (VPP) based on SPP. It is shown that each of the four concepts involves the connection of a series of photovoltaic panels or strings and power electronics devices (DC converters and inverters), which are configured taking into account the peculiarities of the functioning of various structural (schematic) solutions. The advantages of using Smart-inverters as a new technology that can help integrate solar energy and other distributed energy resources into the electrical network are evaluated. Smart inverters are used to help the electrical grid cope with intermittent generation, helping the electrical grid remain stable and maintain voltage and frequency requirements.
 It was determined that in any photovoltaic system, the ESS itself becomes a central component that significantly affects the cost, maintenance requirements, reliability and design of the SPP, and the important parameters of the ESS that affect the operation and performance of the photovoltaic system are the battery maintenance requirements, battery life, available power and efficiency. Trends in the market of advanced energy storage systems for SPPs for the next decade are presented. The functioning of virtual power plants based on SPP, as a network of aggregated distributed energy resources that are remotely connected and work together with flexible electricity consumers, is aimed at maximizing the benefits of participants. The possibilities and trends of SPP development in the near future, which are based on the research of Huawei, are presented.