Impact of High PV Penetration on Transient Stability — a Case Study on the U.S. ERCOT System

Abstract

This study was performed to assess the impact of high photovoltaic (PV) penetration on transient stability using a series of hypothetical models of the ERCOT system. This was done by calculating the critical clearing time (CCT) when faulting various busses. Varying levels of PV penetration were used to study the system transient stability. For each case 15% wind penetration was also included. It was found that under the PV volt/Var control with plant-level GE SolarControl settings, PV penetration at lower level can slightly improve the transient stability in the ERCOT system model. However, at approximately 54% penetration of renewables (39% PV and 15% wind), transient stability starts to show declining trend. This value has slight variance depending on PV distribution.