Evaluating future power distribution system reliability including distributed generation

This paper assesses the impact of conventional and renewable distributed generation (DG) on the reliability of future distribution systems, even when the connection may not be simply radial. The variability of the power output of renewable DGs, such as wind and solar is included. The stochastic nature of the renewable resources and their influence on the reliability of the system are modeled and studied by computing the adequacy transition rate. An integrated Markov model that incorporates the DG adequacy transition rate, DG mechanical failure, and starting and switching probability is proposed and utilized to give accurate results for the DG reliability assessment. The main focus in this paper is conventional generation, solar, and wind DG units. The technique used appears to be applicable to any renewable energy source.