Environmentally significant operational loss reduction on the full GB transmission network

A theoretical reduction of 1.4% in Great Britain’s (GB) transmission MW losses has been demonstrated on post-BETTA network simulations using Security Constrained Optimal Power Flow (SC-OPF) techniques. The simulated efficiency saving applied to the live GB network could in principle save the power industry around £3.8 million and 45000 tonnes of carbon dioxide over a full year. Such a saving would support with the European Union target of a 20% cut in carbon dioxide emissions on 1990 levels [1]. Previous SC-OPF research [2] determined that between 1.1 and 1.7% transmission loss reduction is achievable on pre-BETTA networks. The SC-OPF algorithm utilised voltage constraints that were consistent with the GB Security and Quality of Supply Standards (SQSS) and included more than 50 of the worst credible contingencies on the GB network. The SC-OPF algorithm proceeded by manipulating GB controls including the voltage target of generators, Static VAR Compensators (SVC), and the status of shunt capacitors and reactors to reduce the transmission MW loss objective function. Our optimised network simulation results showed significant increases in system VAR gain, which meant that the reactive generation requirement was reduced in these studies. This paper will present these results, and discuss practical issues with utilising SC-OPF on the GB network data.