The impact of rooftop solar on wholesale electricity demand in the Australian National Electricity Market

Solar energy from rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems in Australia’s National Electricity Market (NEM) has been continuously increasing during the last decade. How much this change has affected power demand from electricity networks is an important question for both regulators and utility investors. T...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Guan Yan, Lin Han
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2023-06-01
Series:Frontiers in Energy Research
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenrg.2023.1197504/full
_version_ 1827916380452683776
author Guan Yan
Lin Han
author_facet Guan Yan
Lin Han
author_sort Guan Yan
collection DOAJ
description Solar energy from rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems in Australia’s National Electricity Market (NEM) has been continuously increasing during the last decade. How much this change has affected power demand from electricity networks is an important question for both regulators and utility investors. This study aims to quantify the impact of rooftop solar energy generation on spot electricity demand and also to forecast power system load in the post-covid-19 era. Using half-hourly data from 2009 to 2019, we develop a novel approach to estimate rooftop solar energy generation before building regression models for wholesale electricity demand of each state. We find that the adoption of solar PV systems has significantly changed the levels and intra-day patterns of power demand, especially by reducing daytime power consumption from the grid and creating a “duck curve”. The results also show that most states in the NEM would see decreased electricity demand during 2019–2034.
first_indexed 2024-03-13T03:13:18Z
format Article
id doaj.art-bfc2745dbc2e44a48b1d3f012de3d269
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 2296-598X
language English
last_indexed 2024-03-13T03:13:18Z
publishDate 2023-06-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Energy Research
spelling doaj.art-bfc2745dbc2e44a48b1d3f012de3d2692023-06-26T10:09:54ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Energy Research2296-598X2023-06-011110.3389/fenrg.2023.11975041197504The impact of rooftop solar on wholesale electricity demand in the Australian National Electricity MarketGuan Yan0Lin Han1School of Economics and Management, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, ChinaMacquarie Business School, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaSolar energy from rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems in Australia’s National Electricity Market (NEM) has been continuously increasing during the last decade. How much this change has affected power demand from electricity networks is an important question for both regulators and utility investors. This study aims to quantify the impact of rooftop solar energy generation on spot electricity demand and also to forecast power system load in the post-covid-19 era. Using half-hourly data from 2009 to 2019, we develop a novel approach to estimate rooftop solar energy generation before building regression models for wholesale electricity demand of each state. We find that the adoption of solar PV systems has significantly changed the levels and intra-day patterns of power demand, especially by reducing daytime power consumption from the grid and creating a “duck curve”. The results also show that most states in the NEM would see decreased electricity demand during 2019–2034.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenrg.2023.1197504/fullsolar energyenergy transitionspot electricity demandrooftop PVrenewable energy
spellingShingle Guan Yan
Lin Han
The impact of rooftop solar on wholesale electricity demand in the Australian National Electricity Market
Frontiers in Energy Research
solar energy
energy transition
spot electricity demand
rooftop PV
renewable energy
title The impact of rooftop solar on wholesale electricity demand in the Australian National Electricity Market
title_full The impact of rooftop solar on wholesale electricity demand in the Australian National Electricity Market
title_fullStr The impact of rooftop solar on wholesale electricity demand in the Australian National Electricity Market
title_full_unstemmed The impact of rooftop solar on wholesale electricity demand in the Australian National Electricity Market
title_short The impact of rooftop solar on wholesale electricity demand in the Australian National Electricity Market
title_sort impact of rooftop solar on wholesale electricity demand in the australian national electricity market
topic solar energy
energy transition
spot electricity demand
rooftop PV
renewable energy
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenrg.2023.1197504/full
work_keys_str_mv AT guanyan theimpactofrooftopsolaronwholesaleelectricitydemandintheaustraliannationalelectricitymarket
AT linhan theimpactofrooftopsolaronwholesaleelectricitydemandintheaustraliannationalelectricitymarket
AT guanyan impactofrooftopsolaronwholesaleelectricitydemandintheaustraliannationalelectricitymarket
AT linhan impactofrooftopsolaronwholesaleelectricitydemandintheaustraliannationalelectricitymarket