Comparing Centralized and Decentralized Storage in Microgrids: Implications for Consumer Behavior

Due to the increase in demand for electricity, the lack of fossil fuels, and the use of renewable energy sources, the use of energy storage systems becomes necessary. The use of storage systems in different parts of microgrids has countless advantages. These benefits include improving the overall efficiency of the system, increasing the stability of the network, the possibility of optimal control strategies at both the national and regional levels and the effective identification of vulnerabilities in the system. This paper focuses on the issue of coordinated and optimal energy management in a microgrid, especially when dealing with centralized and decentralized storage. This study simultaneously examines the impact of the presence of storage systems in both centralized and decentralized modes, as well as the creation of incentive policies to reduce demand. It examines the interaction between these two factors and their effects on cost reduction and overall network voltage deviation. The work has been done on a standard IEEE network with 69 buses using MATLAB software. It has been shown that in the presence of decentralized energy storage, network performance and consumer consumption are better, and network losses and voltage deviations are also reduced.