Optimal Planning of Smart Charging Facilities using Grey Wolf Optimizer

The proliferation of Plug-in Electric Vehicles (PEVs) has a detrimental effect on the operation of the distribution system. Photovoltaic powered charging stations (PCFs) integrated with energy storage offer a viable solution to reduce the dependency on the electric grid for charging PEVs. To maximize the benefits of PCFs, they should be integrated into the distribution network at optimum locations. A well-planned and operated charging facility would provide several benefits to the distribution network, such as reducing power losses, improved voltage regulation, and reactive power support. This paper proposes a three-stage optimization algorithm based on Grey Wolf Optimizer (GWO) for the optimal planning of PCFs integrated with energy storage. The objectives include the reduction of power losses and the improvement in voltage profile while maximizing the contribution from the photovoltaic system. Several scenarios are simulated using the IEEE 13-bus unbalanced radial distribution feeder to validate the effectiveness of the algorithm.