Auction-Based Single-Sided Bidding Electricity Market: An Alternative to the Bilateral Contractual Energy Trading Model in a Grid-Tied Microgrid

An auction-based single-sided bidding energy transaction mechanism in a grid-connected microgrid (MG) using a multi-agent system allows for better profit sharing for all stakeholders. This can replace existing bilateral contractual trade between the stakeholders. In the bilateral contractual energy trade model, energy transactions are either long-term, medium-term, or short-term agreements or bilateral negotiations between the stakeholders based on physical limits. Whereas in an auction-based mechanism, the energy transaction is in real time based on bidding strategies and supply-demand mismatches among the stakeholders. This work proposes a single-sided auction mechanism (SSAM) to clear the market based on the asking price of the seller and the supply-demand mismatch of the microgrid. In addition, the new two bidding algorithms, namely the linear bidding algorithm (LBA) and the fuzzy logic-based bidding algorithm (FLBA), are developed for sellers to select the ‘ask’ quotes. The proposed auction-based, single-sided bidding energy transaction mechanism is tested and validated in the existing Malnad College of Engineering (MCE) grid-tied MG (bilateral contractual) trading model, Hassan-573201, Karnataka, India. The energy market simulation results yield promising findings, highlighting the advancement of proposed SSAM and bidding strategies in boosting the profit margin of sellers.