Technical Losses on Distribution Networks in the Presence of Distributed Energy Resources

The integration of distributed generation (DG) in distribution networks has grown in recent years due to its ability to increase the efficiency of the system. One of the aspects that increase this efficiency provided by GD is the reduction of electrical losses. In this study, simulations of different cases are carried out to assess the losses of active power depending on the location and the level of penetration of distributed photovoltaic generation. The study is divided into two stages. In the first one, the objective is to verify the impact of the GD location on the technical losses of the distribution system. Based on the best location obtained, the technical losses are evaluated in relation to the level of penetration of these sources in the system in the second stage. In the latter, five possible penetration scenarios were considered and the behavior of technical losses in the distribution systems was analyzed. The simulations are performed using OpenDSS software and are applied for the standard IEEE 34-node distribution system. The results demonstrate that the insertion of distributed generation can contribute satisfactorily to the reduction of technical losses in energy distribution systems, as long as they are well allocated and with an optimized penetration level.