IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/eneeco/v56y2016icp51-63.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

System-friendly wind power

Author

Listed:
  • Hirth, Lion
  • Müller, Simon

Abstract

Previous studies find that the economic value of electricity (USD/MWh) generated by wind power drops with increasing market share. Different measures can help mitigate the value drop, including electricity storage, flexible conventional plants, expansion of transmission, and demand response. This study assesses another option: a change in design of wind power plants. “Advanced” wind turbines that are higher and have a larger rotor compared to rated capacity (lower specific rating) generate electricity more constantly than “classical” turbines. Recent years have witnessed a significant shift towards such advanced technology. Our model-based analysis for Northwestern Europe shows that such design can substantially increase the spot market value of generated electricity. At a 30% penetration rate, the value of 1MWh of electricity generated from a fleet of advanced turbines is estimated to be 15% higher than the value of 1MWh from classical turbines. The additional value is large, whether compared to wind generation costs, to the value drop, or to the effect of alternative measures such as electricity storage. Extensive sensitivity tests indicate that this finding is remarkably robust. The increase in bulk power value is not the only advantage of advanced turbines: additional benefits might accrue from reduced costs for power grids and balancing services. To fully realize this potential, power markets and support policies need to be appropriately designed and signal scarcity investors.

Suggested Citation

  • Hirth, Lion & Müller, Simon, 2016. "System-friendly wind power," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 51-63.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:56:y:2016:i:c:p:51-63
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2016.02.016
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140988316300317
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.eneco.2016.02.016?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Gunnar Luderer & Volker Krey & Katherine Calvin & James Merrick & Silvana Mima & Robert Pietzcker & Jasper Vliet & Kenichi Wada, 2014. "The role of renewable energy in climate stabilization: results from the EMF27 scenarios," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 123(3), pages 427-441, April.
    2. Heide, Dominik & von Bremen, Lueder & Greiner, Martin & Hoffmann, Clemens & Speckmann, Markus & Bofinger, Stefan, 2010. "Seasonal optimal mix of wind and solar power in a future, highly renewable Europe," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 35(11), pages 2483-2489.
    3. Gunnar Luderer & Volker Krey & Katherine Calvin & James Merrick & Silvana Mima & Robert Pietzcker & Jasper van Vliet & Kenichi Wada, 2014. "The role of renewable energy in climate stabilization: results from the EMF27 scenarios," Post-Print halshs-00961843, HAL.
    4. Brigitte Knopf & Bjørn Bakken & Samuel Carrara & Amit Kanudia & Ilkka Keppo & Tiina Koljonen & Silvana Mima & Eva Schmid & Detlef P. Van Vuuren, 2013. "Transforming The European Energy System: Member States' Prospects Within The Eu Framework," Climate Change Economics (CCE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 4(supp0), pages 1-26.
    5. Lund, Henrik, 2005. "Large-scale integration of wind power into different energy systems," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 30(13), pages 2402-2412.
    6. Hirth, Lion & Ueckerdt, Falko, 2013. "Redistribution effects of energy and climate policy: The electricity market," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 934-947.
    7. Swider, Derk J. & Beurskens, Luuk & Davidson, Sarah & Twidell, John & Pyrko, Jurek & Prüggler, Wolfgang & Auer, Hans & Vertin, Katarina & Skema, Romualdas, 2008. "Conditions and costs for renewables electricity grid connection: Examples in Europe," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 33(8), pages 1832-1842.
    8. Lion Hirth, Falko Ueckerdt, and Ottmar Edenhofer, 2016. "Why Wind Is Not Coal: On the Economics of Electricity Generation," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 3).
    9. Brown, Sarah J. & Rowlands, Ian H., 2009. "Nodal pricing in Ontario, Canada: Implications for solar PV electricity," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 170-178.
    10. Hirth, Lion, 2013. "The market value of variable renewables," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 218-236.
    11. Lamont, Alan D., 2008. "Assessing the long-term system value of intermittent electric generation technologies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 1208-1231, May.
    12. Grothe, Oliver & Schnieders, Julius, 2011. "Spatial Dependence in Wind and Optimal Wind Power Allocation: A Copula Based Analysis," EWI Working Papers 2011-5, Energiewirtschaftliches Institut an der Universitaet zu Koeln (EWI).
    13. Paul L. Joskow, 2011. "Comparing the Costs of Intermittent and Dispatchable Electricity Generating Technologies," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(3), pages 238-241, May.
    14. Grothe, Oliver & Schnieders, Julius, 2011. "Spatial dependence in wind and optimal wind power allocation: A copula-based analysis," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(9), pages 4742-4754, September.
    15. May, Nils, 2017. "The impact of wind power support schemes on technology choices," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 343-354.
    16. Hartner, Michael & Ortner, André & Hiesl, Albert & Haas, Reinhard, 2015. "East to west – The optimal tilt angle and orientation of photovoltaic panels from an electricity system perspective," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 160(C), pages 94-107.
    17. Heide, Dominik & Greiner, Martin & von Bremen, Lüder & Hoffmann, Clemens, 2011. "Reduced storage and balancing needs in a fully renewable European power system with excess wind and solar power generation," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 36(9), pages 2515-2523.
    18. Blanco, María Isabel, 2009. "The economics of wind energy," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 13(6-7), pages 1372-1382, August.
    19. Lewis, Geoffrey McD., 2010. "Estimating the value of wind energy using electricity locational marginal price," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(7), pages 3221-3231, July.
    20. Tafarte, Philip & Das, Subhashree & Eichhorn, Marcus & Thrän, Daniela, 2014. "Small adaptations, big impacts: Options for an optimized mix of variable renewable energy sources," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 80-92.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Eising, Manuel & Hobbie, Hannes & Möst, Dominik, 2020. "Future wind and solar power market values in Germany — Evidence of spatial and technological dependencies?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    2. Lion Hirth, Falko Ueckerdt, and Ottmar Edenhofer, 2016. "Why Wind Is Not Coal: On the Economics of Electricity Generation," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 3).
    3. Klie, Leo & Madlener, Reinhard, 2022. "Optimal configuration and diversification of wind turbines: A hybrid approach to improve the penetration of wind power," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    4. Lion Hirth, 2015. "The Optimal Share of Variable Renewables: How the Variability of Wind and Solar Power affects their Welfare-optimal Deployment," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 1).
    5. Hirth, Lion & Ueckerdt, Falko & Edenhofer, Ottmar, 2015. "Integration costs revisited – An economic framework for wind and solar variability," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 925-939.
    6. Ueckerdt, Falko & Brecha, Robert & Luderer, Gunnar & Sullivan, Patrick & Schmid, Eva & Bauer, Nico & Böttger, Diana & Pietzcker, Robert, 2015. "Representing power sector variability and the integration of variable renewables in long-term energy-economy models using residual load duration curves," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 90(P2), pages 1799-1814.
    7. Kirkerud, Jon Gustav & Bolkesjø, Torjus Folsland & Trømborg, Erik, 2017. "Power-to-heat as a flexibility measure for integration of renewable energy," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 776-784.
    8. Philip Tafarte & Marcus Eichhorn & Daniela Thrän, 2019. "Capacity Expansion Pathways for a Wind and Solar Based Power Supply and the Impact of Advanced Technology—A Case Study for Germany," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-23, January.
    9. Jägemann, Cosima, 2014. "An illustrative note on the system price effect of wind and solar power - The German case," EWI Working Papers 2014-10, Energiewirtschaftliches Institut an der Universitaet zu Koeln (EWI).
    10. Hirth, Lion, 2016. "The benefits of flexibility: The value of wind energy with hydropower," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 181(C), pages 210-223.
    11. Obermüller, Frank, 2017. "Build Wind Capacities at Windy Locations? Assessment of System Optimal Wind Locations," EWI Working Papers 2017-9, Energiewirtschaftliches Institut an der Universitaet zu Koeln (EWI).
    12. Merrick, James H., 2016. "On representation of temporal variability in electricity capacity planning models," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 261-274.
    13. Javier L'opez Prol & Wolf-Peter Schill, 2020. "The Economics of Variable Renewables and Electricity Storage," Papers 2012.15371, arXiv.org.
    14. Ruhnau, Oliver, 2022. "How flexible electricity demand stabilizes wind and solar market values: The case of hydrogen electrolyzers," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 307(C).
    15. Hirth, Lion, 2013. "The market value of variable renewables," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 218-236.
    16. Bernath, Christiane & Deac, Gerda & Sensfuß, Frank, 2021. "Impact of sector coupling on the market value of renewable energies – A model-based scenario analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 281(C).
    17. Mowers, Matthew & Mignone, Bryan K. & Steinberg, Daniel C., 2023. "Quantifying value and representing competitiveness of electricity system technologies in economic models," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 329(C).
    18. Alexander Kies & Bruno U. Schyska & Lueder Von Bremen, 2016. "The Demand Side Management Potential to Balance a Highly Renewable European Power System," Energies, MDPI, vol. 9(11), pages 1-14, November.
    19. Romeiro, Diogo Lisbona & Almeida, Edmar Luiz Fagundes de & Losekann, Luciano, 2020. "Systemic value of electricity sources – What we can learn from the Brazilian experience?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    20. Johannes Pfeiffer, 2017. "Fossil Resources and Climate Change – The Green Paradox and Resource Market Power Revisited in General Equilibrium," ifo Beiträge zur Wirtschaftsforschung, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, number 77.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Wind power; Variable renewables; Market value; Power market modeling;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q42 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Alternative Energy Sources
    • C61 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Mathematical Methods; Programming Models; Mathematical and Simulation Modeling - - - Optimization Techniques; Programming Models; Dynamic Analysis

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:56:y:2016:i:c:p:51-63. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/eneco .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.