IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/rep/wpaper/2006-02.html

The Economics of Wind Power with Energy Storage

Author

Listed:
  • Pablo Benitez
  • Lilianna Dragulescu
  • G. Cornelis van Kooten

Abstract

We develop a nonlinear mathematical optimization program for investigating the economic and environmental implications of wind penetration in electrical grids and evaluating how hydropower storage could be used to offset wind power intermittence. When wind power is added to an electrical grid consisting of thermal and hydropower plants, it increases system variability and results in a need for additional peak-load, gas-fired generators. Our empirical application using load data for Alberta’s electrical grid shows that 32% wind penetration (normalized to peak demand) results in a net cost increase of $C5.20/ MWh, while 64% wind penetration could result in an increase of $12.50/MWh. Costs of reducing CO2 emissions are estimated to be $41-$56 per t CO2 . When pumped hydro storage is introduced in the system or the capacity of the water reservoirs is enhanced, the hydropower facility could provide most of the peak load requirements obviating the need to build large peak-load gas generators.

Suggested Citation

  • Pablo Benitez & Lilianna Dragulescu & G. Cornelis van Kooten, 2006. "The Economics of Wind Power with Energy Storage," Working Papers 2006-02, University of Victoria, Department of Economics, Resource Economics and Policy Analysis Research Group.
    • Handle: RePEc:rep:wpaper:2006-02
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://web.uvic.ca/~repa/publications/REPA%20working%20papers/WorkingPaper2006-02.pdf
    File Function: Final version, 2006
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • Q40 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - General
    • Q42 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Alternative Energy Sources
    • Q50 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - General

    Lists

    This item is featured on the following reading lists, Wikipedia, or ReplicationWiki pages:
    1. Fuente de energía intermitente in Wikipedia Spanish
    2. Variable renewable energy in Wikipedia English

    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:rep:wpaper:2006-02. 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.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using 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: G.C. van Kooten (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/devicca.html .

    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.