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U.S. Department of Energy
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The Eastern Renewable Generation Integration Study: Insights on System Stress: Preprint

Conference ·
OSTI ID:1351935
The Eastern Renewable Generation Integration Study (ERGIS) explores the operational impacts of the wide spread adoption of wind and solar photovoltaics (PV) resources in North America's Eastern and Quebec Interconnections. We explore the impact of large scale adoption of wind and solar generation on the unit commitment and economic dispatch of the largest coordinated power system in the world by simulating hourly and five-minute operations. Using NREL's high-performance computing capabilities and new methodologies to model operations, we found that the modeled system, as simulated with evolutionary change in 2026, could balance the variability and uncertainty of wind and solar PV at a five-minute level under a variety of conditions. Our simulations achieve instantaneous penetrations that exceed 50% of load while meeting an annual penetration of 30% on an energy basis. The system meets balanced load and supply in all intervals, with modest curtailment, using technologies and practices that are widely available today. However, a variety of the conditions present in these simulations deviate substantially from historical practice. In this work, we analyze potentially stressful system conditions that occur in the simulations and identify opportunities for innovation, regulatory reform, and changes in operating practices that require further analysis to enable the transition to a system with more wind and solar PV.
Research Organization:
NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States))
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability
DOE Contract Number:
AC36-08GO28308
OSTI ID:
1351935
Report Number(s):
NREL/CP-6A20-67205
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English