The role of energy storage for mini-grid stabilization

Bella Espinar (1) , Didier Mayer (1)

1 CEP/Sophia

Mini-grids may be designed to operate autonomously with or without connection to a central grid. While operating autonomously, they cannot rely on the central grid to provide stabilization to control the line voltage and frequency, balance supply and demand of power and manage real or reactive power. Energy storage can provide stabilization in a mini-grid as follows: when the system works autonomously, storage provides or absorbs power to balance supply and demand, to counteract the moment to moment fluctuations in customer loads and unpredictable fluctuations in generation. When grid connected, energy storage systems also can provide ancillary services to improve power quality such as voltage and frequency regulation, harmonic filtering, and fault clearing (i.e. supply of short circuit current). This is named the power use of energy storage, contrary to the usual energy use of energy storage.

Mots clés: energy storage; mini-grid

Domaines: Sciences de l'ingénieur [physics]; Energétique

Bella Espinar, Didier Mayer. The role of energy storage for mini-grid stabilization. 2011. ⟨hal-00802927⟩