A review on the virtual power plant: Components and operation systems

Due to the high penetration of Distributed Generations (DGs) in the network and the presently involving competition in all electrical energy markets, Virtual Power Plant (VPP) as a new concept has come into view, with the intention of dealing with the increasing number of DGs in the system and handling effectively the competition in the electricity markets. This paper reviews the VPP in terms of components and operation systems. VPP fundamentally is composed of a number of DGs including conventional dispatchable power plants and intermittent generating units along with possible flexible loads and storage units. In this paper, these components are described in an all-inclusive manner, and some of the most important ones are pointed out. In addition, the most important anticipated outcomes of the two types of VPP, Commercial VPP (CVPP) and Technical VPP (TVPP), are presented in detail. Furthermore, the important literature associated with Combined Heat and Power (CHP) based VPP, VPP components and modeling, VPP with Demand Response (DR), VPP bidding strategy, and participation of VPP in electricity markets are briefly classified and discussed in this paper.