Understanding The Operational Impact Of Storage And Renewables On The Electricity Provision Of The Future

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Degree type
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Graduate group
Operations, Information and Decisions
Discipline
Operations Research, Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering
Management Sciences
Physics
Subject
Batteries
Electricity
Energy
Renewables
Storage
Sustainability
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Copyright date
2023
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Author
Kaps, Christian
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Abstract

Electricity grids as well as oil and gas supply chains are masterpieces of engineering, prime examples of second-to-second supply-demand matching, and the backbones that power modern economies. Yet, they also emit 72% of greenhouse gas emissions globally, cause geopolitical issues and leave billions of humans unserved. To address these issues, the industry is rapidly evolving: over $9.5 trillion were invested in the power sector since 2010 and new technologies like EVs, energy storage, or green hydrogen challenge the status quo. Add to this the ever-changing policy landscape, the need for rapid decarbonization, and vocal, but heterogeneous customer interests and one reaches a business model landscape that is in rapid flux. In this dissertation, I study those evolving energy markets to help us understand how to best integrate new technologies and customer choices to ensure a future with greener power for more people on this planet. In the first chapter 'When Should the Off-grid Sun Shine at Night? Optimum Renewable Generation and Energy Storage Investments', I model how solar power and energy storage technologies can help off-grid locations, like islands or remote villages, to partially replace fossil fuel generation which can help reduce emissions, lower electricity costs, and increase access to electricity. In the second chapter 'Privately-Owned Battery Storage - Re-Shaping The Way We Do Electricity', I develop a structural model to explain why residential households invest in their own battery storage next to buying solar panels and how they utilize electricity. I estimate those preferences and utilities using a proprietary, big-data-set of German households and then study how private-owned battery storage impacts household behavior, grid-load and make policy recommendations. In the third chapter 'Quality-Adjusted Power. Where to Optimally Locate Wind Turbines', I develop a metric to quickly compare different locations for wind-power development that consider the natural resource quality, the distance to load centers, transmission constraints, and the timing between local wind-power generation and electricity demand in the market.

Advisor
Netessine, Serguei
Date of degree
2023
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