20 Years of Hosting Capacity Studies, 2004–2024

The term “hosting capacity”, in the context of power systems, was first introduced in March 2004 and has since resulted in a range of applications and research. Network operators commonly use the concept to quantify the ability of their networks to accept new production and consumption. Academic research on hosting capacity took off seriously after 2010 and has resulted in thousands of publications. This paper presents a brief history of the early years of hosting capacity studies, gives an overview of the status of both applications and research, summarises the different methods and types of studies, and correlates all that with the underlying fundamental principles of the hosting capacity concept, as it was introduced in 2004. The main focus of this paper is to review and relate these methods and studies to the fundamental principles. Having a clear understanding of these fundamental principles enables a wide range of applications for hosting capacity studies with detailed methods and models. However, it also requires transparency to ensure a coherent analysis, correct interpretation of the results, and an open discussion between stakeholders. With research on hosting capacity, it is important to refer to the fundamental principles; with applications, it is important to maintain transparency and objectivity.