Impact of increased deployment of distributed photovoltaic systems on power grid in Jordan challenges and potential solutions

In Jordan, electrical power demands trend is continuously increasing in the following decade. In 2030, the peak load is expected to achieve 7375 MW, which is 2.12 times higher than the power demands in 2016. Utilization of fuel local resources especially oil shale and renewable energy resources helps in securing the needs of the Jordanian power system to the generation capacity. Renewable energy is considered as one of the most of important alternative sources available in Jordan. The rate of renewable energy contribution to the total energy mix is expected to reach 15% in 2020. Increased deployment of distributed renewable energy systems will be subjected to challenges such as efficient management of “duck-curve” dilemma and electrical harmonics. Therefore, potential solutions such as installation of energy storage systems and smart inverter with advanced functions should be considered in the development process of power grid capacity in Jordan.