The impact of electrification of heating on the power grid for a selected area microgrids

Abstract

In an era of changes in the electricity market, where the share of renewable energy sources is increasing and moving away from conventional coal-based energy, the electricity used for heating is gaining importance, for example to power heat pumps. They currently are one of the most common ways for heating buildings as an alternative to fossil fuels and biomass. In this article, the authors present an analysis aimed at answering the question whether using the concept of microgrids in Polish realities provides a feasible solution. Within the framework of this article, analyses were carried out by assuming the electrification of the heating installation of users in a local microgrid located in a selected location of the Polish low-voltage distribution network. The increase in electricity demand needed to generate the corresponding amount of heat was then estimated, and subsequently the impact of this demand on the microgrid was determined. In addition, in the article, the authors estimate the production of a prosumer PV installation at the selected location and analyze the level of autoconsumption of the generated electricity in the PV installation by the heat pump.