The study of economic effects when different distributed generators (DG) connected to a distribution system

Abstract

This paper presents the study and analysis of an economic impact on distributed generator (DG) installation connected to the 22-kV distribution system of the Thanyaburi substation of Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA), Thailand, which covers 8.18 km of distribution line distance and has four BUS connected with DG. In order to determine the optimal size and type of DG, the DIgSILENT PowerFactory software is used to simulate the DG connected to the distribution system. The DG used in case studies has three types: solar power, wind power, and biomass; each type has a size varied from 1-8 MW. For economic evaluation, the indices of discount payback period (DPB) and internal rate of return (IRR) are employed. The results indicate that solar power and wind power which are high power generation can be more achievable economic performance than low power one due to better the ratio between investment costs and megawatts. However, the biomass distributed generation of 1 MW gives the best DPB (4.78 years) and IRR (25.27%), as well as more efficient in electrical generation than the solar power and wind power.