Multi-criteria optimization for determining installation locations for the power-to-gas technologies

The steady rise of the integration of renewable energy sources (RES) has led to a re-examination of existing energy storage technologies as well as the development of new ones, e.g. power-to-gas (P2G) technology. This technology uses surplus of electricity from RES to create the synthetic natural gas, which can be stored for long periods of time, and thus it can significantly support the integration of RES into the existing power grid and extend a system transmission capacity, which is needed because of increasing number of volatile renewable resources. This paper gives an overview about the main aspects of the P2G technology. In the scope of this study the selection of optimal installation points for such a technology — depending on different criteria (e.g. availability of RES, gas network, renewable CO2) — is described. The case study is based on the German federal state Saxony-Anhalt, which plays a leading role in Germany for the renewable energy production and is the largest exporter of electricity and importer of natural gas. The P2G technology implementation makes it possible to increase the security and autonomy of supply security and autonomy for the chosen region.