Evaluation of Customer-oriented Power Supply Risk with Distributed PV-Storage Energy Systems

The valuation of whether network operators meet users’ expectations in ensuring a continuous supply to their premises is important in determining their willingness-to-pay (WTP) for electricity. Distributed resources such as photovoltaic (PV) systems will dominate future networks, and thus customers’ WTP will vary dynamically, both spatially and temporally. Whereas system-wide indices are typically used to assess network performance, there is a requirement to complement these with customer-based indices to accurately quantify the risk of outages to affected and worst-served customers. This paper presents an enhanced Monte Carlo simulation technique, which performs reliability assessment of a typical MV/LV urban distribution network. Two smart grid scenarios considering controllability of PV and energy storage (ES) are designed to improve network performance. Customerbased reliability indices, measuring the frequency and duration of interruptions, and energy not supplied are thoroughly assessed. Results demonstrate the potential of hybrid PV-ES in reducing power supply risk for worst-served customers.