Integrating Fast-response Capability into Virtual Power Plant Operation for Ancillary Services

Virtual power plants (VPPs) can aggregate distributed energy resources (DERs) to provide ancillary services for power systems, creating new profit opportunities. Ancillary services such as secondary frequency regulation require providers to have sufficient response capability to follow rapidly changing control commands. If overlooking the response requirement, the VPP will not be able to accurately measure its regulation capability, reducing its earnings in performance-based markets or risking disqualification. This paper integrates the requirement for fast-response capability into the operational framework of VPPs providing ancillary services. We leverage historical control commands to formulate chance constraints in the bidding model, mandating that the VPP’s fast-response capability meets the requirement of ancillary services with a specified probability. Case studies verify that considering fast-response capabilities can enhance VPP operation.