Continuous power imbalance assessment from multi-area economic dispatch models

To be able to efficiently maintain a continuous balance between supply and demand in power systems with high shares of variable renewable energy (VRE) sources, a variety of studies related to the topic are needed. A fundamental input parameter for such studies is an assessment of the power system's physical needs for balancing power, in form of power imbalances. This article presents a new model for simulating physical power imbalances with a 1-minute time resolution based on multi-area economic dispatch simulations. Compared to existing models with the same purpose, the new model includes the combination of simulating power imbalances with 1-minute time resolution, simulating forecast uncertainty, simulating the continuous behaviour of all power system components and simulating the transmission for netting of power imbalances between balancing areas. By applying the model to a case study of the Nordic synchronous power system in year 2045, the impact of including these features in the model is highlighted. Case study results also show that the size and pattern of power imbalances much depends on the characteristics of a balancing area, in terms of electricity demand, available generation technologies and interconnections to other balancing areas.