Pillar 1 – System Operator Research & Peer Learning
Representatives from leading global technical institutes and the G-PST Founding System Operators (FSOs) have formulated and are currently pursuing a research agenda that lays out the near-term applied research priorities of the FSOs. The research informed by this agenda will support power system operators in reliably and cost-effectively achieving very high penetrations of inverter-based resources (IBRs) on their power systems over the next decade. The results of the research will be shared with all system operators globally.
Pillar 1 activities are guided by the Research Agenda Group (RAG) under the CEOs of the Founding System Operators and will be conducted by researchers across the globe who choose to tackle these research questions. In addition to the RAG, Pillar 1 also includes a Research Advisory Committee (RAC), consisting of members from advanced system operators, energy companies, manufacturers, universities, national labs and consultants.
Focused Research Teams
To increase the impact of its activities, the RAG developed several focused research teams to provide fundamental underpinnings to more detailed research questions in the research agenda. These teams are made up of subject matter experts from the FSOs and leading researchers from the Core Team of the G-PST.
The Inverter-based Resources Research Team is investigating how the fundamental needs of the power system can be supplied by Inverter-Based Resources (IBRs) and where additional research will be needed to access these capabilities. In parallel, this team also addresses how the tools and models we currently use to study the power system will need to be updated (or superseded) in light of the grid’s changing nature with increasing IBRs.
The Resource Adequacy Research Team is investigating how the rise of variable, energy limited resources combined with severe weather events driven by climate change will require changes to planning practices to ensure low-cost reliable power systems of the future.
In addition to these research teams there is also an extensive Research Repository being developed. It details current and recent research projects from around the world that are well-aligned with the Inaugural Research Agenda. This repository can be used by funding and research institutions to ensure they are up-to-date with the latest research and not duplicating efforts. Well-aligned projects may also receive support from the FSOs in terms of input and demonstration opportunities.
Latest Accomplishments
G-PST/ESIG Webinar Series: Use of AI and Big Data in the Control Room
May 2022
The need for data driven decision tools to support the grid operator in the future is increasing. The operator needs to monitor and control an electricity system with a high degree of complexity due to an increasing amount of renewables integrated into the system. This webinar briefly covers Energinet’s strategy around the control center of the future, specific use cases empowered by machine learning and data and the effort to build digital culture and capabilities.
Featured Speaker: Jesper Abildgaard Nielsen, Senior Director of Data & Systems (Product development), Energinet
G-PST/ESIG Webinar Series: Inertia Monitoring
April 2022
As shares of inverter-based resources increase, fewer synchronous generators may be online at any given time. Inertial response available from synchronous machines after a sudden large imbalance on the system is therefore diminishing. Various methods and technologies to improve and supplement inertial response exist and are gradually being deployed in power systems with high shares of inverter-based resources. Regardless of the methods being used, there is a need to improve situational awareness and accurately monitor available inertial response in real-time. A number of methods for estimating and monitoring inertia have been developed over the past few years. This webinar covers the need for inertia monitoring and methods that are currently being used or proposed around the world.
Featured Speaker: Julia Matevosyan, Chief Engineer, ESIG
G-PST/ESIG Webinar Series: Project EDGE / DER Marketplace Demonstration
30 March 2022
Project EDGE is an innovative, first of its kind trial demonstrating a proof-of-concept Distributed Energy Resources (DER) Marketplace to inform current and future reforms in line with Australia’s Energy Security Board Post 2025 NEM initiatives.
This collaboration between the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), AusNet Services (AusNet) and Mondo (collectively, the Project Partners), with financial support from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) seeks to understand, test, and demonstrate a proof-of-concept DER Marketplace that enables efficient and secure coordination of aggregated DER to provide wholesale and local network support services within the constraints of the distribution network in a way that promotes the National Electricity Objective (NEO). The primary intent is to identify capabilities that can be replicated at scale across the National Electricity Market (NEM).
This presentation provides an overview of the project, learnings to date and research questions that aim to answer key questions across industry on the customer needs, alignment to the NEOs, wholesale integration capability, local network services requirements, operation within Dynamic Operating Envelopes (DOEs), how to efficiently exchange data at scale, and the roles and responsibilities of each of the actors within the DER Marketplace.
Speakers:
- Nick Regan, Business Lead – Project EDGE, AEMO
- John Theunissen, Project EDGE Lead, AusNet Services
- Anoop Nambiar, Program Manager, Distributed Energy, AusNet Services
Watch the Recording
CSIRO, AEMO, and G-PST Release Research Roadmap to Support Australia’s Energy Transition
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Australia’s national science agency and a Global Power System Transformation (G-PST) Consortium regional lead organization, released a Roadmap highlighting the research required to continue Australia’s transition to a more secure and affordable electricity system, showing that innovation can drive the integration of renewables. The Roadmap was developed in collaboration with G-PST Founding System Operator, the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), and is based on input from leading Australian and international system operators as well as research agencies from the G-PST. The G-PST’s System Operator Research and Peer Learning Pillar (Pillar 1) adapted key research questions from the G-PST Research Agenda to the Australian context, with the goal of supporting Australia’s energy transition in the long-term interests of consumers.
The research areas identified by G-PST’s Pillar 1 address the challenge of rapid change faced by Australia’s National Electricity Market and Wholesale Electricity Market. Australia’s electricity systems face several key challenges, including ageing infrastructure, increasing complexity, and the need for investment in transmission and distribution. The Roadmap summarizes the outcomes of nine individual research plans, including their criticality to Australia’s energy transition, which research should be prioritized, and how the research could form individual programs. The key research topics are:
- Inverter design
- Stability tools and methods
- Control room of the future
- Planning
- Restoration and Black Start
- Services
- Architecture (Australian-specific)
- Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) (Australian-specific)
- DERs and Stability (Australian-specific)
Specifically, the whole Research Roadmap provides both high-level and detailed descriptions of the purpose and objectives of each of the nine research plans, including the high priority tasks proposed to be delivered in the short term. The nine research plans and the accompanying documents also outline why the research specified in the Roadmap is critical to Australia, how the outcomes apply to Australia, and how Australian research can contribute to the meeting the G-PST’s goals. In addition, the expected timeline and associated risks to deliver the Research Roadmap are also provided.
Download Australia’s G-PST Research Roadmap and accompanying documents.
- Factsheet PDF (511 KB)
- Factsheet PPTX (4 MB)
- Slide Summary PDF (3 MB)
- Slide Summary PPTX (44 MB)
- Executive Summary Report PDF (2 MB)
- Executive Summary Report DOCX (4 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 1: Inverter Design PDF (949 KB)
- Research plan for Topic 1: Inverter Design DOCX (1 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 2: Stability Tools and Methods
- Research plan for Topic 2: Stability Tools and Methods DOCX (1 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 3: Control Room of the Future PDF (3 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 3: Control Room of the Future DOCX (4 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 4: Planning PDF (2 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 4: Planning DOCX (33 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 5: Blackouts and System Restoration PDF (1 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 5: Blackouts and System Restoration DOCX (2 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 6: Services PDF (1 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 6: Services DOCX (2 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 7: Architecture PDF (11 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 8: Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) PDF (5 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 8: Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) DOCX (2 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 9: DERs and Stability PDF (2 MB)
- Research plan for Topic 9: DERs and Stability DOCX (2 MB)
Applications Open for PhD Studentships at Imperial College
As the penetration of renewable resources in electricity grids pushes towards 100%, services need to be redefined around the new resources in a way that ensures resilience is achieved at lowest cost. This is a challenge requiring the coordination of evolving technical needs and capabilities with economics and hard to define societal reliability and resiliency needs. This exciting mix of issues is made further challenging by the pace of change and the trend in digitalization of the entire energy systems (including grids) that is happening in parallel.
Within the Control & Power Group of Imperial College London, the Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department has established a new research team focused on the technical system services needed to ensure reliable and resilient operation of future power systems. The team is aligned to the G-PST Consortium and its Research Agenda.
Four PhD studentships have been established to support this team and applications to fill the positions are open through May 31st, 2022. The studentships are expected to begin at Imperial College on October 1st, 2022. Learn more about the positions and how to apply: PhD Studentships (x4) in System Services in 100 % Renewable Grids
Open Discussion with Global Power System Operators: The AI Opportunity
March 2022
In this webinar, representatives from power system operators around the world share their impressions of the opportunities, challenges, bottlenecks, and on-the-ground realities associated with several areas of innovation identified in the G-PST research agenda. The webinar aims to begin an active and ongoing discussion between power system operators and members of the power systems and AI/machine learning research communities, with the goal of forming collaborative teams that go on to address the challenges discussed. This event was hosted by Climate Change AI, the G-PST Consortium, and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), with speakers from the G-PST Founding System Operators – Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), California ISO (CAISO), EirGrid, Energinet, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), and National Grid ESO.