Reactive Power Cost From PV Inverters Considering Inverter Lifetime Assessment

Photovoltaic (PV) system inverters have been frequently utilized for reactive power support in the literature. Although the benefits of PV reactive power for the grid have been quantified, the costs incurred by the PV owner have largely been ignored. This paper combines the findings from power electronics research and power system economics to formulate the cost of reactive power from PV inverters, considering the inverter degradation due to the reactive power provision. One-year simulations with real weather and load data for the case of Singapore for different levels of PV penetration have been conducted. Subsequently, the benefits of local reactive power provision to the system and its effect on the lifetime of PV inverters were analyzed. It was found that the cost of inverter lifetime reduction is a significant part of the reactive power cost (more than 50% at lower PV penetration), but decreases at higher PV penetration when the reactive power support is distributed over more PV systems. Through comprehensive analysis, the feasible range for monetary incentives for PV reactive power support has been identified. The results from this paper can, therefore, be used as a foundation for future research, formulating regulations, and for market analysis.