Validating Coordination Schemes between Transmission and Distribution System Operators using a Laboratory-Based Approach

Abstract

The secure operation of future power systems will rely on better coordination between transmission system and distribution system operators. Increasing integration of renewables throughout the whole system is challenging the traditional operation. To tackle this problem, the SmartNet project proposes and evaluates five different coordination schemes between system operators using three benchmark scenarios from Denmark, Italy, and Spain. In the project, field tests in each of the benchmark countries are complemented with a number of laboratory validation tests, to cover scenarios that cannot be tested in field trials. This paper presents the outcome of these laboratory tests. Three tests are shown, focusing on controller validation, analysis of communication impacts, and how well price-based controls can integrate with the SmartNet coordination schemes. The results demonstrate important indications for the field tests and also show some of the limitations with the current implementations of the coordinations schemes.

TSO-DSO coordination to acquire services from distribution grids: Simulations, cost-benefit analysis and regulatory conclusions from the SmartNet project

“…Another dimension that plays an important role in the actuation of the coordination schemes is represented by the communication infrastructure. For the considered services, the present technology has been proven to be adequate for the activation of the requested reserves [12] and, as reported in [13], no significant differences are expected in communication requirements for all the investigated CSs. For this reason, simulations have not directly considered communication layer.…”

TSO/DSO Coordination for RES Integration: A Systematic Literature Review

“…Pilot study [18,24,31,37] Novel TSO/DSO coordination approach [14][15][16][17][19][20][21][22][23][26][27][28][29][30][32][33][34][35][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46]48,[51][52][53]56,57,61,62,66,[68][69][70] 3.1. TSO/DSO Coordination: Conceptual Framework…”

“…Although researchers in the field recognize the importance of demonstrating the feasibility of the different TSO/DSO coordination approaches proposed in the literature by deploying technological pilots, there is a lack of real-life experiences reported in the literature [31]. In [18,24,31], and [37], the European project SmartNet, which is a pilot study within the context of a real-life scenario, is discussed. Authors in [18,24,31], and [37] demonstrate different potential TSO/DSO coordination schemes and evaluate their main advantages, as well as their main issues.…”

“…In [18,24,31], and [37], the European project SmartNet, which is a pilot study within the context of a real-life scenario, is discussed. Authors in [18,24,31], and [37] demonstrate different potential TSO/DSO coordination schemes and evaluate their main advantages, as well as their main issues. In addition, different types of RESs, and their impacts on the TSO/DSO coordination performance, are also studied to better understand their potential flexibilities and main operational challenges.…”

“…There is a lack of real-life experiences for testing and demonstrating the technical feasibility of the TSO/DSO coordination approaches available in the literature. In fact, only four of the selected articles in the SLR ( [18,24,31,37]) conduct experiments in the real-life scenario. Moreover, all of them are related to the SmartNet project.…”