The operational difficulty of standardizing frequency restoration products

This paper assesses operational impacts of the Continental European power plant portfolio on a harmonization of load-frequency control. The technical basics are presented together with an 18-area system of Continental Europe implemented in SIMULINK. The results reveal significant differences in frequency restoration among control areas. These differences originate from country-specific power plant portfolios as well as non-standardized control and activation parameters. An evaluation of pro rata and merit order activation demonstrates that frequency restoration can be harmonized to a certain extent but can cause both improvement or deterioration for control areas. Product standardization in the scope of market design and the choice of technical parameters in the scope of system operation are inextricably linked.