Guidelines for Technical and Economic Evaluation of Microgrids

Can microgrids be used in transmission-level resource planning?

The combination of these developments identifies benefits that microgrids can provide within many aspects of distribution planning. Ultimately, this development will enable microgrids to be included within transmission-level resource planning such as integrated resource planning processes.

Why are microgrids difficult to commercially evaluate?

Microgrids have seen as challenging to commercially evaluate for several reasons. Firstly,a microgrid represents a series of assets and infrastructure that come from different value streams, and during operation, a microgrid may go through several phases (generation, control, independence) but these phases are not distinct and often overlap .

Should microgrid planning and design tools be repurposed?

While microgrid planning and design tools achieve their project goals and requirements, repurposing them to meet new or evolving requirements is often a time consuming and difficult proposition.

Does a microgrid installation benefit from economies of scale?

Economies of scale While making a commercial decision regarding renewable energy microgrid installation, the life cycle cost is not the only concern;whether an installation can benefit from economies of scale is also critical. The effect of savings due to economies of scale is usually measured by the economies of the scale factor.

Are microgrids sustainable?

While examining the sustainability of a microgrid, it is best that all costs and benefits that microgrids incur and bring are considered .It has been suggested that investment in a microgrid can result in manifold benefits, such as enhanced energy efficiency and integrated renewable power generation.

What challenges must be addressed when developing a microgrid?

The design of an adequate protection scheme is another important challenge that must be tackled when developing a microgrid. In fact, differently from traditional distribution networks, fault currents in microgrids may drastically change depending upon the location of the fault.