Pv Integration Study In A Canadian Northern Remote Community

The vast majority of the 300 Canadian off-grid communities rely heavily on diesel-fuel generators as their source of electricity. In northern communities, the annual photovoltaic (PV) potential ranges from 850 to 1150 kWh/kWp. Therefore, there is an opportunity for these communities to decrease their dependency on diesel fuel by integrating more PV to supply a portion of their electricity demand. Currently, remote Canadian microgrid models are not available to conduct studies that involves integrating PV as alternative solution. The availability of a simulation model with field data will allow for the opportunity to study renewable energy integration as well as hosting capacity with smart grid technologies such as advanced inverter functions and demand-side management. This paper addresses the need to reduce the diesel consumption of Jean-Marie River First Nation; a remote community in the Northwest Territories of Canada. A digital microgrid model of the community's power grid was developed using OpenDSS and Matlab. The model was then validated with field data measured using an advanced metering infrastructure. The validated model was used to conduct renewable energy (RE) integration study and establish a range of maximum allowable PV capacity on the power grid based on voltage limits. Later, advanced inverter functions were applied to mitigate voltage violations resulting from the RE integration thus further increasing the PV integration limit or hosting capacity of the microgrid.