Optimal operation of small, numerous, and disparate DERs via aggregation in transactive distribution systems with universal metering

Abstract

Transactive energy distribution systems (TEDS) have unleashed new economic opportu-nities in the distribution sector via a new local distribution operator (LDO) that enablestransactions between peers and the LDO (P2LDO) and peer-to-peer transactions. Aimingto unleash full benefits from existing distributed energy resources (DERs), this paper intro-duces an optimization algorithm for the operation of small, numerous, and disparate DERaggregations. The proposed algorithm seeks to maximize aggregator profits obtained viaP2LDO and peer-to-peer transactions for energy and demand response, while being cog-nizant of capacity obligations acquired during transactive energy distribution system plan-ning phases. In addition, the concept of universal metering is introduced to upgrade theeconomic opportunity of DERs. Results obtained via case studies show that the proposedapproach can help DER owners to increase their revenue. An aggregated case study for300 m shows that the overall revenue can be increased by more than 100% when operatingDERs in an aggregated fashion