A Two-Stage Stochastic Unit Commitment Model for Wind-integrated Power Systems Flexibility Assessment

Decision making regarding the operation of renewable-integrated power systems have become increasingly complex in view of the need for flexibility, i.e., the ability to accommodate time-dependent variability arising from the interactions between uncertainties in the demand and renewable power sources. In this paper, a two-stage stochastic unit commitment program is proposed to determine cost-effective on/off schedules for a wind-integrated power system. Uncertainties in the aggregated load and wind power generation are considered to generate random operating scenarios. Generation-side flexibility metrics are introduced to trace and analyze events of energy not supplied and/or wind power curtailment. An application of the proposed optimization program is conducted for a modification of the New England IEEE 39-Bus test system. The results show the usefulness of the model for generation scheduling and providing valuable insights regarding the design of operational strategies for efficient use of wind power.