High penetration PV deployment in the Arizona Public Service system

In an effort to better understand the impacts of high penetrations of photovoltaic (PV) generators on distribution systems, Arizona Public Service (APS) and its partners have begun work on a multi-year project to develop the tools and knowledgebase needed to safely and reliably integrate high penetrations of utility and residential scale PV. Building upon the APS Community Power Project - Flagstaff Pilot, this project will analyze the impact of PV on a representative feeder in northeast Flagstaff. To quantify and catalog the effects of the estimated 1.5 MW of PV that will be installed on the feeder (both smaller units at homes as well as large, centrally located systems), high-speed weather and electrical data acquisition systems and digital "smart" meters are being designed and installed to facilitate monitoring and to build and validate comprehensive, high-resolution models of the distribution system. These models will be used to analyze the impacts of the PV on distribution circuit protection systems (including anti-islanding), predict voltage regulation and phase balance issues, and develop volt / var control schemes. The goal of this paper is to provide insight and lessons learned on the early stages of high penetration PV deployment. Primarily focusing on modeling and data acquisition, this paper describes the overall project, early results, and plans for future phases of the project.