Optimal allocation of STATCOM with energy storage to improve power system performance

The production cost of electrical energy has created a need to find reliable, cheap and accessible sources for energy generation. As a result, the use of alternative sources such as wind and solar energy is in rapid growth world-wide. Nowadays these renewable energies are always combined with energy storage systems (ESSs) to save extra energy production and keep the production level below a specific limit. An ESS could also be combined with a STATCOM in a power system. This combination could add the benefits of an ESS to the advantages of a FACTS device such as reduced power flows on overloaded lines, resulting in increased system loadability, lower transmission line losses, improved power system stability and security, lower power production costs, and more secure bus voltage levels. This paper presents a genetic algorithm-based optimization process, for seeking optimal locations and parameters for a STATCOM combined with an ESS in power systems. The optimization process is designed to minimize transmission line losses and maximize the power transmitted by the network. The simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed optimization process in determining optimal locations for the device in several test networks.