Operational Planning of Energy Systems

Learning outcomes

After successful completion of this course, the students will

• be familiar with the basics of technical energy systems as well as the economic and legal parameters in the liberalized energy markets,
• be able to describe important operational planning problems in the energy supply chain, from the exploration, exploitation, and conversion of primary energy carriers over load and price forecasts on electricity markets to the procurement, generation, and distribution of electric power to the end-use customers, and
• be qualified to select and apply suitable models and methods to the solution of operational planning problems in energy management.

Contents

Chapter 1:  Technical and economic foundations of energy systems
1.1 The concept of energy
1.2 Technical energy systems
1.3 Regulatory framework and business environment of energy management

Chapter 2:  Selected planning problems in exploration, exploitation, and conversion of primary energy carriers
2.1 Strategic planning of exploration projects
2.2 Planning open-pit lignite mining
2.3 Facility location for regenerative power plants
2.4 Blending and pooling problems in petroleum processing

Chapter 3:  Load and price forecasts in the power industry
3.1 Forecasts in the power industry
3.2 Short-term load and price forecasts using artificial neural networks

Chapter 4:  Commitment of generating units
4.1 Fundamentals of unit commitment
4.2 The economic dispatch problem
4.3 The unit commitment problem

Literature

• Konstantin, P (2009) Praxisbuch Energiewirtschaft: Energiewandlung, -transport und -beschaffung im liberalisierten Markt. Springer, Berlin
• Rebhan, E, Hrsg (2002) Energiehandbuch: Gewinnung, Wandlung und Nutzung von Energie. Springer, Berlin
• Shahidehpour M, Yamin,H, Li Z (2002) Market Operations in Electric Power Systems, Springer, New York
• Wesselak V, Schabbach T, Link T, Fischer J (2017) Handbuch Regenerative Energietechnik. Springer Vieweg, Berlin
• Wood AJ, Wollenberg BF, Sheblé GB (2014): Power Generation, Operation, and Control. Wiley, Hoboken

GAMS Models

The following table compiles models and sample data for different planning problems and solution methods that are dealt with during the course. The model and example files contain source code written in the algebraic modeling language GAMS, which can be executed using the GAMS system. The GAMS system includes a greater number of state-of-the-art solvers for several types of mathematical programs, providing optimal or locally optimal solutions.

By modifying the example files, new instances can easily be generated for scenario analyses or when preparing the final course exam. A free demo version of the current GAMS system can be downloaded and installed from the web pages of GAMS Development Corp. You need a demo license for the installation, which can be requested using the form provided on the download web page. By return you will receive an email with the license, which must be added to the system during the installation process following the description in the email. The GAMS models can be edited and solved using a simple text editor called GAMS IDE or the with development environment GAMS Studio. In both environments, the comprehensive documentation of the entire GAMS system is available under the "Help" tab.

* Solving the example instance requires a commercial GAMS license