Market Strategy for Enhancing the Profitability of Pumped-Storage Hydro Power Plants Using Photovoltaic Energy

This study examines the techno-economic implications of integrating the produced electricity from photovoltaic power plants (PVPP) with varying installed capacities to enhance the profitability of the planned pumped-storage hydro power plant (PSHPP) Tashmarunishta in North Macedonia. The analysis focuses on optimizing the PV power plant capacity to meet water-pumping demands and maximize the PSHPP’s annual gross profit. Utilizing data from the PSHPP Tashmarunista’s pre-investment study and hourly production data from simulations performed in PV*SOL premium, the research incorporates financial modeling based on HUPX hourly market prices for 2023, alongside sensitivity analyses for average electricity prices from 2016–2024. The results reveal that the PSHPP operates at a financial loss without the use of PV energy, while coupling with PV energy achieves positive annual gross profit. The findings underscore the technical and economic advantages of synergizing PSHPP’s with photovoltaic power plants, demonstrating a scalable model for future energy integration strategies.

I. Introduction

Pumped-storage hydro power plants (PSHPPs) play a critical role in ensuring grid stability by balancing energy storage and generation during variable demand periods. The planned PSHPP Tashmarunishta, located near Cerov Dol, North Macedonia, is designed with an installed capacity of 225 MW (3x75MW), identified as the most economically viable option in [2] . Previous analyses [1] evaluated operational regimes with 6-hour and 9-hour pumping cycles with the use of produced electricity from a PV power plant with the same capacity as the PSHPP, concluding that a 9-hour pumping period (07:00–15:00) coupled with electricity generation from 19:00–24:00 is the most cost-effective. The results indicate that the PSHPP incurs annual losses of about 1 950 000€ for 6-hour pumping regime and about 7 225 000€ for 9-hour pumping regime, when relying solely on market-based electricity trading for pumping and electricity generation [1] .