Technical Constraints and Flexibility Markets in Smart Grids

Technical constraints and flexibility management in smart grids are analyzed using a market based approach. Flexibility services may allow network operators to tackle grid constraints in all timescales, maintaining reliability and quality of service and maximizing integration of distributed energy resources. Here, only short term markets will be considered; consumer and DER flexibility will be used in order to solve the distribution grid constraints (line/transformer overloads or voltage limit violations) in the day-ahead framework. The main contribution of the paper is a proposal of congestion management in smart grids consistent with the wholesale electricity market already in use. The role of the new actors will be highlighted to remark the consequences of regulatory decisions to be taken in the next future.This work has been partly supported by the European Commission through the EU FP7 project IDE4L: Ideal grid for all (FP7-SMARCITIES- 2013-608860) and the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of Spain through the project RSMART: Integration of renewable energy in the smart grid (ENE2013-48690-C2-1-R).European Community's Seventh Framework Progra