A hierarchical multi-area capacity planning model considering configuration ratios of renewable energy and energy storage systems with multi-area coordination

The continuous growth of renewable energy sources (RESs) has increased the demand for flexibility in managing uncertainties of RES generation. Energy storage systems (ESSs) are recognized as one of the promising methods to address this challenge. For multi-area power system planning problems, capacity allocations of RESs can vary considerably among areas accounting for the geographic diversities in RES generation and load patterns. This paper presents a hierarchical coordinated planning model considering the interaction of local-area (LA) planning entities and the system-wide (SW) planner. A novel multi-objective LA planning model is proposed to compute optimal capacity configuration ratios of RESs and ESSs based on regional resource characteristics. The SW planner acts as a coordinator and further optimizes specific capacities of generation assets. Optimal configuration ratios produced by LA planning entities are important indices reflecting LA planning preferences and serve as a link between the two planning layers. Numerical results on a modified NREL-118 test system show that the proposed planning model can reduce carbon emission by an average of 10.5% and improve the RES utilization rate by an average of 1.8% compared with planning models without considering configuration ratios and ESS installations.