Extensive assessment method of renewable energy sources considering the electrical load and feed-in conditions

The two main characteristic attributes of power plants based on renewable energy sources (RES) like wind power or photovoltaic are the fluctuating power generation and the geographical location of installation. Thus, the RES feed-in is neither adaptive to the time characteristics nor to the geographical location of electric loads. The classical efficiency or exergy factor, which was a key parameter of conventional power plants based on storable and transportable energy sources, cannot assess the merits of RES plants considering these characteristic attributes. A new approach of assessing RES is necessary. The objective of this paper was to complement the classical efficiency or exergy factor in terms of an extensive and realistic assessment method of RES installations. The method resulted in a two-dimensional assessment parameter which quantifies the merits of different RES installations regarding their time characteristic and geographical location. The approach comprised the analytical derivation of the assessment method and the application on real feed-in and load scenarios. The assessment results provided a good basis for grid integration, control and optimization of RES plants.