Coordinated Hydropower Plant Simulation for Multireservoir Systems

Abstract

Hydroreservoirs usually serve two main purposes: hydropower production and water consumption. The great flexibility, low operating costs, and low carbon impact of hydroturbines turns them into a desirable technology in the generator mix of power systems. In addition, sustainability and environmental concerns support their use in current power systems, along with other renewable energy sources like wind and solar energy. However, the stochastic nature of river inflows hinders their long-term use and hints at the need to use planning tools. Furthermore, it also requires the use of planning tools in order to balance present and future requirements. This work presents a simulation tool that is employed at Iberdrola to help in the preparation of medium-term hydroelectric production schedules. The main objective of the simulation is to follow the production guidelines given by a long-term hydrothermal problem, while avoiding spillages and failures to fulfill water release agreements. In order to achieve this, the simulation algorithm is structured around several phases that aim at coordinating the operation of all the elements in the basin. This way, the simulation tool provides the operator a way to evaluate the outcome from forecasts of either water inflows or future operation situations. Some of the potential applications of this simulation tool are shown in this work: general simulation in order to know in advance the consequences of possible inflow forecasts, and how to assess several maintenance schedules and different upgrade plans.