Renewable Electricity Grids, Battery Storage and Missing Money: An Alberta Case Study

In this study, we simulate a hybrid renewable energy system with battery storage to power the Alberta grid, to meet the province s goal of phasing out coal-fired power plants by 2030. In doing so, we study the optimal generation mix based on wind, solar, and load data, and we consider the so-called missing money problem in determining how Alberta will be able to facilitate a shift away from fossil fuels sustainably. We find that high carbon tax rates allow for higher levels of wind integration and introduce battery storage into the model, while solar energy remains economically infeasible. This allows the grid to depart from using combined-cycle gas plants to meet base load, though we find that combustion gas turbines are still necessary to act as peakers. One of economic consequence of this situation is that missing money problem is exacerbated, and then a compensation mechanism like the capacity market is necessary for the sake of electricity source adequacy and reliability. Despite this, renewable capacity factors in Alberta are potentially high, and as costs decline in the future, renewable energy will play a key role in meeting energy demand. Acknowledgement