Modelling gas storage with compressed air energy storage in a system with large wind penetrations

Installed wind capacity in the European Union is expected to continue to increase due to renewable energy targets and obligations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Renewable energy sources such as wind power are variable sources of power. Energy storage technologies are useful to manage the issues associated with variable renewable energy sources and align non-dispatchable renewable energy generation with load demands. Energy storage technologies can play different roles in electric power systems and can be used in each of the steps of the electric power supply chain. Moreover, large scale energy storage systems can act as renewable energy integrators by smoothening the variability of large penetrations of wind power. Compress Air Energy Storage is one such technology. The aim of this paper is to examine the technical and economic feasibility of a combined gas storage and compressed air energy storage facility in the all-island Single Electricity Market of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in order to optimise power generation and wind power integration. This analysis is undertaken using the electricity market software PLEXOS ® for power systems by developing a model of a combined facility in 2020.

Large‐scale wind deployment, social acceptance

The public is typically in agreement with the renewable energy targets established in many national states and generally supports the idea of increased reliance on wind energy. Nevertheless, many specific wind power projects face significant local opposition. A key question for the wind energy sector is, therefore, how to better engage local people to foster support for specific projects. IEA Wind Task 28 on Social Acceptance of Wind Energy Projects aims to facilitate wind energy development by reviewing current practices, emerging ideas, and exchanging successful practices among the participating countries. It also aims to disseminate the insights of leading research to a nontechnical audience, including project developers, local planning officials, and the general public. The interdisciplinary approach adopted by Task 28 enables an in-depth understanding of the nature of opposition to wind projects and a critical assessment of emerging strategies for social acceptance. Task 28 has analyzed a range of key issues related to social acceptance of wind energy, including the impacts on landscapes and ecosystems, on standard of living and well-being, the implementation of energy policy and spatial planning, the distribution of costs and benefits, and procedural justice. It is clear that although wind energy has many benefits; however, specific projects do impact local communities. As such the concerns of the affected people have to be taken seriously. Moreover, as opposition is rarely without foundation, it is in the interests of developers and advocates to engage local people and to improve projects for the benefit of all.