An Analysis of the Effects of Renewable Energy Intermittency on the 2030 Korean Electricity Market

Insu Do, Siyoung Lee (), Gab-Su Seo and Sungsoo Kim ()
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Insu Do: Department of Energy & Electrical Engineering, Tech University of Korea (TUK), Siheung-si 15073, Republic of Korea
Siyoung Lee: Department of Energy & Electrical Engineering, Tech University of Korea (TUK), Siheung-si 15073, Republic of Korea
Gab-Su Seo: Power Systems Engineering Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO 15013, USA
Sungsoo Kim: Department of Energy & Electrical Engineering, Tech University of Korea (TUK), Siheung-si 15073, Republic of Korea

Energies, 2023, vol. 16, issue 10, 1-19

Abstract: Republic of Korea has unique geographical characteristics similar to those of an island, resulting in an isolated power system. For this reason, securing sufficient operating reserves for the system’s stability and reliability in the face of the intermittency of increasing variable renewable energy (VRE) is paramount, and this will pave the way to achieving the nation’s decarbonization target and carbon neutrality. However, the current reserve-operation method in Republic of Korea does not take into account energy-system conditions, such as the intermittency of the VRE. Therefore, this paper presents an analysis of the impact of changes in reserve-operation methods on the electricity market in the future Republic of Korean power system, with the increased levels of VRE that are currently envisioned. Specifically, three reserve-operation methods, including Korea’s current reserve-power-operation standards, were applied to the two power-system plans announced by the Korean government to analyze the annual generator operation and costs. The analysis results show that securing reserves proportional to the VRE would exert negative effects, such as increased power-generation costs and the curtailment of nuclear and VRE generation. These results can contribute to the estimation of operational reserves needed for high levels of VRE and to the design of new the Korean reserve market, to be introduced in 2025.

Keywords: carbon neutrality; Korean electricity market; linear programming relaxation; market operation; operating reserve; variable renewable energy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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