Effect of Distributed Photovoltaic Generation Installation on Voltage Profile: A Case Study of Rural Distribution System in Yogyakarta Indonesia

Distributed generation (DG) is one of the new approach in the installation of power plants which the plant location is no longer centralized, but it was spread on the distribution of electricity feeders. Nowadays, the application of distributed generation has increased because it is related to smart feeders and it was related to the development with clean, renewable energy technologies based on solar and wind. This supports government programs to use renewable energy in 2025 by 23% where 35,000 MW of 23% is solar panels in Indonesia. Large-scale development of distributed power plants can affect the conditions of the distribution feeder. Therefore, it is necessary to know the impact of the installation of distributed power plants. This study was conducted to analyze the effects of the penetration of the distributed power plant in this case photovoltaic in 2 cases of installation location. First, the distributed generation was placed in the center of the feeder. Second, distributed generation was placed at the end of the feeder. Simulation in this study was conducted using the Open Distribution System (OpenDSS) software with real data of rural distribution feeder in Bantul Regency, Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The 20kV distribution feeder was used in this feeder, and it was divided into one feeder. The results of this study are expected to provide information about the impact of the power plant penetration spread on voltage and power losses in the distribution feeder, especially in the Bantul feeder. The results of the study show that the installation of distributed power plants enhances the voltage profile.