Transmission expansion planning (TEP) determines the location, timing, and number of new circuits required to reinforce the power grid. By strategically selecting reinforcements, TEP prepares the network to accommodate demand growth, integrate new generation sources, and adopt emerging technologies in the electric power sector. However, the growing scale of modern power systems increases the complexity of problem formulation and its solution, motivating the development of computationally efficient optimization approaches. This paper proposes a cross-entropy (CE) algorithm with an elite-based strategy for solving the TEP optimization problem. The planning model considers static, long-term TEP with DC power flow, accounts for ohmic losses, and enforces the “N-1” security criterion. The methodology is validated on three systems: an academic benchmark and two large-scale real-world networks. In all cases, the CE method explores the solution space effectively and yields high-quality plans, positioning it as a compelling and relevant approach for TEP. • Elite-based cross-entropy for transmission expansion planning • Ranked-criteria optimization: minimize load cuts, cost, line additions, and losses • Validated on three benchmark power systems of different sizes • Finds best-known plans and new superior solutions from prior studies
Born et al. (Fri,) studied this question.