Impact of Dispersed Generation on Optimization of Power Exports

Dispersed generation (DG) is defined as any source of electrical energy of limited size that is connected directly\ud to the distribution system of a power network. It is also called decentralized generation, embedded generation or\ud distributed generation.\ud Dispersed generation is any modular generation located at or near the load center. It can be applied in the form\ud of rechargeable, such as, mini-hydro, solar, wind and photovoltaic system or in the form of fuel-based systems,\ud such as, fuel cells and micro-turbines.\ud This paper presents the impact of dispersed generation on the optimization of power exports. Computer\ud simulation was carried out using the hourly loads of the selected distribution feeders on Kaduna distribution\ud system as input parameters for the computation of the line loss reduction ratio index (LLRI).\ud The result showed that the line loss reduced from 163.56MW to 144.61 MW when DG was introduced which is\ud an indication of a reduction in line losses with the installation of DG at the various feeders of the distribution\ud system. In all the feeders where DG is integrated, the average magnitude of the line loss reduction index is\ud 0.8754 MW which is less than 1 indicating a reduction in the electrical line losses with the introduction of DG.\ud The line loss reduction index confirmed that by integrating DG into the distribution system, the distribution\ud losses are reduced and optimization of power exports is achieved\ud The results of this research paper will form a basis to establish that proper location of distributed generation\ud units have significant impact on their effective capacity