Economic Benefits of Solar Photovoltaics and Battery Systems at Customer Side studied via Screening Curve Method

Abstract

This paper develops a method of economic evaluation of solar photovoltaics (PV) and battery systems based on the framework of Screening Curve Method (SCM). While the SCM has been known as an intuitive model to estimate the least-cost expansion of generation capacity in a bulk power system, this paper applies it to the problem of optimal sizing of PV and battery systems at customer side. For this, we propose to alter the procedure of load slicing employed in the existing SCM and to construct load slices using PV generation profile. As a result, we develop a method of economic evaluation of PV and battery systems where the customer's electricity demand and PV generation profile are represented using time series of 24 hours. The accuracy of calculated results by the developed method is verified by comparing with the results obtained by a linear programming model. An intuitive graphical analysis enabled by the developed method is illustrated through an example with typical demand and PV generation data.