Power Trading with Hybrid Couple (Battery & Renewables) is a Real-time Optimization Process
Investment in renewable sources with a hybrid structure that includes batteries can have profitable operating modes and potentially bring better returns than stand-alone renewable projects.
Studying how to set up decision processes for real-time charge and discharge signals in order to lock a margin greater than or equal to the Levelized cost of energy source (LCOES) will lead you to the following conclusions:
1. The current forecast on the production from renewables should be as accurate as possible at all times.
2. Batteries’ activations (are planned ahead of delivery) will have to arbitrate in price the latest accurate forecast (expected power generation profile) of the renewables against the intraday hourly power price on the market.
3. The iterative process 1+2 will have to be repeated regularly every minute (or 5, 10 minutes) and the trader shall re-optimize the position by placing a trade (if this decision is in the money with a margin higher from LCOES).
4. The complete optimization of the hybrid renewable source will include two parts:
Part A) arbitrage opportunity limited to the available capacity (size) of the battery, plus
Part B) savings achieved from flattening the remaining power position (imbalance losses avoided) resulted from the latest changes in the forecast of renewable generation, against the available volumes on the intraday power market.
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