An Impact Study of Time of Use Pricing on Voltage Control Devices

Time of Use (TOU) pricing motivates customers to schedule flexible loads from peak to off-peak periods and minimizes electricity bills. TOU pricing minimizes peak demand and energy procurement costs. This paper investigates different TOU price levels in the Distribution System (DS) with varying load profiles and solar PV penetration levels. TOU pricing affects the system’s load profile, which in turn affects the performance of the voltage control devices. The demand response and its effect on voltage regulation have been researched in the literature. On the other hand, the impact of TOU pricing on voltage control devices has not been properly investigated. The effects of TOU pricing on Conservative Voltage Reduction (CVR), switching of On-Load Tap Changers (OLTC), Voltage Regulators (VR), and Capacitor Banks (CB), reactive power output, and active power curtailment by solar inverters are examined in 69-node DS and IEEE 123-node DS systems With varying levels of solar PV penetration.