Impact of P2P power trading on rooftop PV in Alberta

Leberer, Philipp Thomas

4. Term

Urban, Energy and Environmental Planning, Master

2018

2018-04-23

90 pages

The Canadian province of Alberta has one of the highest greenhouse gas emissions per capita in the world. An economic and energy system built on fossil fuels and their extraction makes reductions a difficult issue. However, the province has committed to do their part and reduce the carbon intensity of the system. One goal is to introduce a higher share of distributed renewable energy production but the low price of electricity doesn't incentivize the investment in small scale capacity by consumers enough. Therefore, the introduction of a p2p-trading policy is proposed, that would allow peers to trade their surplus power with other consumers in close proximity. The added value of the transactions is based on using the transmission costs and divided them between the peers. A model to simulate PV production and the settlement of p2p trades is developed and used on a case study in the Aspen Gardens neighborhood of Edmonton. Results show that the import of electricity for the neighborhood can be reduced significantly by allowing p2p trading. However, the economic benefits of the policy are not high enough to make the investment in rooftop PV interesting. Low electricity prices are the main barrier for a higher share of small renewable generation in the province. If prices rise in the coming years with an increase in carbon taxation and the closure of coal power plants, the picture might shift.

p2p ; blockchain ; pv ; Canada ; renewable ; energy ; participation

Download
View record in AAU Student Projects