What is Long-Term System Planning?

Long-term system planning refers to the planning activities conducted regularly by utilities and power system operators to inform investment decisions on generation, transmission, and distribution capacities in order to support anticipated customer demand. The rapid addition of solar energy and other new energy technologies onto the grid has changed the ways in which grid planning is performed.
This modernization of the electric power system requires developing new tools and models—particularly for analyzing the variable and dynamic behaviors of the electric power system—so the grid can be run reliably and contribute to our energy resilience and security. Learn more about the basics of systems integration.

Why is Long-Term System Planning Important?

As more solar is added to the grid, it presents challenges for system operators because of its variable nature: solar can only generate electricity when the sun is shining, so it must be balanced with other sources of generation and storage to meet customer demand. Conducting simulations of different grid scenarios to assist with long-term planning can help determine optimal resource allocations far in advance to prevent any problems such as resource inadequacy or wasteful curtailment.
Modeling and simulation have become quite advanced for different sections of the overall grid. These models have included the bulk power system, sub-transmission networks, and distribution feeders. But the rapidly changing features of each of these interconnected subsystems affects the whole, so it is important to better understand the dynamic behavior of a fully integrated grid.
The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) funds research to improve system planning models and tools in order to meet its goal of improving the ability of solar energy to integrate into the country’s electric grid, and to combine solar technologies with storage, efficiency, and other value-adding technologies that allow solar to contribute to enhanced grid reliability and resilience.

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