A new automatic generation control with heterogeneous assets for integration of renewables

High penetration of intermittent, non-dispatchable distributed energy sources (DER) necessitates new tools for Automatic Generation Control. The intermittency in turn introduces an increasing need to install expensive spinning-reserves. This paper presents a new control strategy that avoids this expensive solution. This strategy consists of three components, the first of which is a combined use of different assets including storage, demand-response and thermal units to meet load fluctuations at high and low frequencies. The second is the use of a one step-ahead stochastic load model that helps provides accurate set-points for the assets to follow. The third is the use of a cyber-communication infrastructure that monitors, computes, and communicates the necessary information to various nodes. Together the resulting Decision and Control strategy provides a necessary blueprint for the design of a Smart Grid.