A Review of Solar Power Scenario Generation Methods with Focus on Weather Classifications, Temporal Horizons, and Deep Generative Models

Abstract

Scenario generation has attracted wide attention in recent years owing to the high penetration of uncertainty sources in modern power systems and the introduction of stochastic optimization for handling decision-making problems. These include unit commitment, optimal bidding, online supply–demand management, and long-term planning of integrated renewable energy systems. Simultaneously, the installed capacity of solar power is increasing due to its availability and periodical characteristics, as well as the flexibility and cost reduction of photovoltaic (PV) technologies. This paper evaluates scenario generation methods in the context of solar power and highlights their advantages and limitations. Furthermore, it introduces taxonomies based on weather classification techniques and temporal horizons. Fine-grained weather classifications can significantly improve the overall quality of the generated scenario sets. The performance of different scenario generation methods is strongly related to the temporal horizon of the target domain. This paper also conducts a systematic review of the currently trending deep generative models to assess introduced improvements, as well as to identify their limitations. Finally, several research directions are proposed based on the findings and drawn conclusions to address current challenges and adapt to future advancements in modern power systems.