The Islands of Cape Verde as a Reference System for 100 % Renewable Deployment

Fully renewable, isolated power systems have gained relevance given the global agenda related to the energy transition. Thus raising the amount and diversity of the performed gridrelated research. However, the existing generic reference systems are usually aimed to a particular type of study and don’t capture the influence of technologies and methods used to accommodate renewables such as power electronics, energy storage, demand response, etc.

In addition, the majority of studies are focused on the micro-grid perspective. When analyzing grids, size does matter, and yet, there is no benchmark available suitable for validating both static and dynamic studies in the dozens to hundreds of MW range. Therefore, there is a need for a reference system capturing the behaviour of modern, mid & large size isolated power systems ranging from 20 to 100 % renewable energy penetration, accommodating a very diverse technological mix.

The purpose of this work is to fill these gaps, presenting a benchmark suitable for studies in mid to large size power system using real data from existing isolated grids. The network of two islands from Cape Verde is used as inspiration for the models due to the relevance of their layout and configuration, but also the country’s renewable penetration targets.

All the data has been provided by Electra and Cabeólica, the local System Operator and largest renewable utility of the country respectively. The data is Open-Access, accessible in an online repository [1], conveniently prepared and presented in different tables and files covering a range of traditional and modern studies such as: power flow, energy management, control, stability, reliability, resiliency etc.