Power System Seminar Series: #2

Doireann Barry, Power System Operational Planning

Michael Burke, Power System Control

ECONOMIC DISPATCH AND

UNIT COMMITMENT
1

Michael Burke
NCC
Power System Control

Doireann Barry
Generation Team
Power System
Operational Planning

Scheduling & Dispatch

1 Day >> Real Time
Outage Planning
3 Years >> 2 Days

Capacity Adequacy
20 Years >> 5 Years

Objectives of Good Outage Planning

Good Outage Planning ensures that the portfolio of plant
available to PSC/ NCC for Scheduling & Dispatch is:
Adequate
Available Generation - Demand = Acceptable
Usable
Generation x System Constraints = Accessible

Flexible
Plant Portfolio System Issues = Adaptable

Who are the Stakeholders?

NCC
Delivers portfolio of Generators for Scheduling & Dispatch

Generators
Process for scheduling maintenance
Provides certainty regarding start/end dates

System Users
Security of Supply keeping the lights on
Economic & efficient - keeping the costs down

Managing Risk & Security of Supply

What is Risk?

Risk = Likelihood x Impact

Impact in winter is much higher than in summer:

Its cold, dark & miserable
Demand is much higher
Overall risk of security of supply is higher in Winter than Summer

How do we manage the risk?

By delivering a portfolio of plant for dispatch that is:
Adequate
Usable
Flexible
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Adequate?
Weekly
Demand
Peak

Forced
Outage
Probabilities
of
Generators

Weekly
Generation
Capacity
(including
Outages)

Wind
Generation
Capacity
Credit

Imports
available
from SONI

Usable?

Usable?

2,300 MW
(conventional)
+
650MW (wind)

Flexible

Black start plant (self-start)

Required for Power System Restoration Plan

Peakers / quick start

Need quick-start plant to manage unplanned events in real-time

Plant with a low minimum load

Can be kept on at night without curtailing wind
Can provide inertia

Outage Planning Process

Schedules outages for all centrally-dispatched generators
Iterative process - adapts to changes
Forced outages
New plant/ Decommissioned plant

NCC
2 Days Ahead

3 Years Ahead

10

Assessing Outages longer term

Fast-Acting
Plant
Predicted
Weekly
Demand
Peak

Forced
Outage
Probabilities
of Generators

Constraint
on our
system
or on SONIs
system

Duration

?
Weekly
Generation
Capacity
(including
Outages)

Wind
Generation
Capacity
Credit

Time of
Year

Blackstart
Imports
available
from SONI

11

Assessing Outages Shorter-term

Forced
Outage
Probabilities
of Generators

Fast-Acting
Plant

Predicted
DAILY
Demand
Peak

Constraint
on our
system
or on SONIs
system

Type & Size

of Plant

Wind
Generation
FORECAST

Duration

Weekly
Generation
Capacity
(including
Outages)

Timing

Imports
available
from SONI

Timing of
Outage
Blackstart

12

What has changed?

Outages plans are not as fixed
Maintenance driven by run-hours rather than cyclical
Over 100 changes to 2011 plan

Focus before was Capacity Adequacy only

Focus now on Flexibility (wind) and Usability (transmission
system)

Wind doesnt impact on capacity studies as

Assume a capacity credit figure
Wind farms generally dont take all turbines at once

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What have we done to respond to these

changes?
Gather more information from all parties
Work much closer with generators

Outage assessment is a lot more complex

Not just available plant margin

Publication of the outage plans and our processes for

managing outages

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Where can you find all the information?

http://www.eirgrid.com/operations/outageinformation/

Generator submits a new outage plans

Are these revised dates

acceptable to the Generator?

EirGrid will suggest

alternative outage time/
dates

Generator submits
Outage Plan

No
EirGrid provide
load forecast, wind
capacity credit &
FOPs

EirGrid assess feasibility

of Generation Outage
Plan

Does the outage plan satisfy

all the relevant criteria?

Yes
SONI provide tieline capacity

EirGrid agree the

Generation Outage Plan

Generator receives email notification of

outage plans

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Key Points
Aim is to deliver an adequate, usable, flexible portfolio
of plant for Scheduling & Dispatch
Generator Outage Planning takes place from 3 years
ahead 2 Days ahead
Coordination with the Generators is very important

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Scheduling & Dispatch

April 2011

Michael Burke
National Control Centre Engineer
EirGrid

Overview

What is Scheduling and Dispatch?

Timeline of Scheduling and Dispatch Process
RCUC Scheduling Tool
Forecasts
Operational Security
Economics
Dispatch
Reschedule or Re-Dispatch?
Real Time Power System Operation Examples

Power System Operation

50 Hz:
Generation = Demand

Safe, Secure and

Economic Operation of
Power System

SCHEDULING
& DISPATCH

Bulk Transfer of Power on

Physical Transmission
System

Single Electricity Market

(SEM): EirGrid & SONI

What is Scheduling?
Scheduling
Assignment of generation in advance to meet forecast system demand,
while observing security standards and other expected constraints.
Uses best forecast of input variables (Demand, Wind, Availability etc)

Plans for credible generation and transmission contingencies

Produces a least cost schedule of generator outputs for each discrete 30
minute time point in a 30 hour time horizon (06:00D 11:30D+1)
Tie-Line Flow and Reserve schedules also produced
Collaborative process between EirGrid (NCC) and SONI (CHCC)

What is Dispatch?
Dispatch
Refines schedule in real time to ensure that generation meets actual
demand on a second by second basis
Maintains reserve requirements and system security in real time

Issuing of real dispatch instructions to generators

Managing deviations in forecasts

Managing unforeseen events and system disturbances

Minimise production cost in real time

Scheduling & Dispatch Timeline

Day Ahead
Schedule
16:00 D-1
Generation
Outage
Planning

In Day
Schedule 1
04:00 D

Subsequent
In Day
10:00 D &
21:00 D

RCUC Scheduling Tool

RCUC: Reserve Constrained Unit Commitment
ABB Software tool, used only by the TSOs, which utilises Linear
Programming to optimise Unit Commitment and Economic Dispatch
RCUC considers constraints UUC does not
Main Inputs:
Load Forecast
Wind Forecast
Expected Generator Availability
Generator Testing
Reserve Requirement
Transmission Constraint
Groups(TCGs)
Hydro Targets
Market submitted prices and
generator technical parameters
Moyle DC Flow

Outputs:

RCUC

Generation Schedule
Tie Line Flow Schedule
Reserve Schedule

 Forecasting
Operational Security
Economics

Load Forecasting some influencing factors

Time of Year (especially around
clock change)
Day of Week
School & Public Holidays
Weather:
Temperature and wind chill =>
Heating/Air Conditioning load
Light intensity => Lighting load
Rain => Domestic & lighting
load

Social Factors sporting

events, T.V. shows etc.
Economic Factors

Load varies during the year

Winter Peak 2010

Weekday April 2011

Aug. Bank Hol. Mon. 2010

Load varies during the week

Mon.
Tue.
Fri.
Sat.

Sun.

Load varies with weather

Christmas Eve 2010

min. temp -5 Celsius
Christmas Eve 2009
min. temp 0 Celsius

Load Forecasting
Software Tool Forecasts system demand for 14 days ahead
Uses historical system demand & weather data supplied by Met Eireann
NCC Engineer input

Unusual days e.g. holiday

Base load forecast on particular historical load curves
Peak and min. scaling
Factor scaling & Add to forecast

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MW

Impact of Grand Slam Rugby: Saturday 14th March v. Saturday 21st March

3800
Presentation Ends TV Ad Break

3600

3400

3200
Match Ends

3000

2800
Half Time

2600
14th
March

2400

2200

2000
21st
March

Wind Forecasting

Approximately 1800MW installed on the island

Two forecast suppliers
15 minute resolution, updated every 6 hours
Forecast data for up to 5 days in advance
Forecasts based on:

Weather data and turbine specific power curves

Shadowing Effects, Air Density Effects, Potential Icing
High speed shutdown
Historical data

Accuracy incentives for forecast suppliers

Wind Forecast User Interface

5-Day Forecast

2-Day Forecast

Timing of peaks & troughs can be difficult to predict

Problems arise when forecasts are different/divergent
NCC Engineers assume worst case scenario hindsight 20:20!
Approx 6% - 8%(Installed) Error for 2008 2010 for 24hr horizon

When the Wind Forecast is incorrect 13/04/2011

Constraint/Curtailment

Removal

 Forecasting
Operational Security
Economics

Operating Reserve
Provided by additional generation or demand reduction
Ensures security of supply and control of system:
Frequency Regulation
System Stability

Different time frames as defined in Grid Code

Primary, Secondary, Tertiary

RCUC co-optimises energy and Primary, Secondary and Tertiary reserve

Generators have different reserve capability curves (input to RCUC)
Negative Reserve
Reserve Requirements are an input to RCUC

Double Generator Trip November 2010

399MW & 249MW
tripped within 13 seconds
Nadir 48.855Hz
Moyle Reserve (75MW),
Interruptible Load
(42MW)
Under-frequency Loadshedding(93 MW)
30 EDIL MWOF
Instructions in 15min
7 peakers and 3 hydro
requested to sync

Unit 1
Trip
Unit 2
Trip

Operational Security Criteria

Under normal conditions and in the event of the following contingencies:
N-1: Loss of any item of generation or transmission plant
Loss of the largest single power infeed
There shall not be any of the following:

Loss of supply
Unacceptable frequency conditions
Unacceptable voltage conditions
Unacceptable overloading of any transmission plant
System instability

Transmission Constraint groups (TCGs)

Aim to model physical constraints of the transmission system and of
certain generators
Examples:
North South Tie line export / import constraint (TTC Limits)
Requirement to keep a minimum number of units on in an area
Requirement to limit the output of the generators in an area to limit
short circuit levels or overloads
Requirement to enforce the minimum output from the generators in
an area to support the voltage or to avoid overloads
Hydro: Smolt Protocol caters for salmon & eel migration

TCGs formulated from offline power flow, dynamic studies etc.

Security Analysis Tools in NCC

Real Time Monitoring of Voltages & Power Flows
Real Time Contingency Analysis:

Steady state voltages and power flows

N-1 and N-G contingencies
Runs every 2 minutes on state estimated network model
Output presented graphically

Study Tools allow potential actions/changes to be analysed in advance

Online System Stability: WSAT
Voltage Stability (VSAT) basecase & post contingency
Transient Stability (TSAT) for faults on the system

220kV Line Forced Outage in South-East - 06/04/2011

One 220kV Circuit from Cork on VO
FO Reduces Generation in Cork Area
from Scheduled 750MW

VO

FO

Gen.

N-1 Contingencies due to loss of 3rd

220kV circuit. Power cannot get out of
Cork on 220kV network=> 130% 110kV
overloads

Solution?
Reduce Cork generation - approx.
675MW
N-1 Overloads < 110%.
FO can now proceed

220kV circuit on VO called back - took

approx. 3 hours
Generation of 750 MW now possible in
Cork

VO
Cancelled

FO

Gen.

 Forecasting
Operational Security
Economics

RCUC & Economics

RCUC performs Unit Commitment & Economic Dispatch
Uses Bids and Offers submitted D-1 to SEMO & Technical Parameters
Unit Commitment:

Determine most economic units on load at any time

Start up cost dependent on heat state
Idling or No Load Cost
Start up time also a factor
Length of time unit is required for?
Start Cost & Idling will impact which units are cycled

Economic Dispatch:
Dispatch online units in the most economic fashion
Incremental costs will be the governing cost factor
Reserve typically held on the more expensive units

MINIMISE PRODUCTION COST ON THE ISLAND

Generator Availability Changes & Economics

285 MW unit did not sync @ 06:00

due to mechanical issue
(50/MWhr)
Earliest sync time 12 p.m.
SONI could not provide additional
MWs at this time due to TTC limits
Expensive 250 MW unit in cold
state at 8 hours notice to sync.
(130/MWhr)
NCC cannot wait until 12 p.m. to
call this unit
Unit requested to sync for 15:30

Forecast Wind: 250 MW

Actual Wind: 500MW
Cheaper unit available at 18:15 hrs
In hindsight additional unit not required

RCUC Output Schedules:

Sufficient generation is committed to meet forecast system demand

Should be technically feasible
Help ensure transmission plant is operated within acceptable limits
Consider credible contingencies on the generation and transmission system
Sufficiently flexible to allow for real time management of deviations from forecasts
Minimise total production cost on the island
Provide information to generators who have fuel purchasing commitments
Should be produced and communicated in a timely fashion

THE SCHEDULE GUIDES CONTROL ENGINEERS

IN THE DISPATCH PROCESS

Moving From Schedule to Dispatch

RCUC Output

Real Time
Considerations

EDIL

Gas Indicative Schedule

Is the schedule adequate?

Immediate Priorities

Frequency, Voltage and Power Flows within limits

System stability
Reserve sufficient
Morning Load Rise & Evening Peak

Medium Term Priorities

Load comparison (actual to latest forecast to RCUC schedule)

Wind comparison (actual to latest forecast to RCUC schedule)
Generator Availability Changes & Generator Testing
Margin Check approx. 400MW replacement reserve (20 minute)

Re-Schedule or Re-Dispatch?

Significant
Departure from
Schedule
(>100MW)

New Schedule is
Jointly Prepared

Demand Change
Wind Change
Availability Change
Transmission Contingencies
Generator Performance

Small
Departure from
Schedule
(<=100MW)

Both SOs use a merit order based on incremental price

Manage real time fluctuations in their control area
Maintain required levels of operating reserve
Maintain tie line flow

In Summary
The Scheduling Process feeds into the Dispatch Process
NCC Engineers take a number of real-time factors into
account when issuing dispatch instructions
Time permitting, Engineers will re-schedule if the current
schedule cannot be followed
NCC will face unplanned issues when dispatching
At all times NCC give priority to safety and security