Assessing the impacts of distribution grid planning rules on the integration of renewable energy sources

This paper tackles the problem of designing planning rules for the integration of renewable energy sources into distribution networks. A novel method is proposed for the assessment and optimization of such planning rules over multi-year horizons. Especially, this method considers: 1) a random generator of multi-year scenarios, which allows taking uncertainties into account, and 2) a simulator of investment decisions, which applies the studied planning rules to the considered network over the multi-year scenarios. The challenge is to find the best planning strategies to reduce the average cost regarding the integration of various renewable generation levels. The proposed method is illustrated through a case study built from realistic data to assess current French planning rules over 10-year scenarios of RES integration on a test network.