Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Marios Pappoutis, assistant network operator at Cyprus’ transmission system operator, said operating an electricity grid on a small island is a “particular challenge.” He spoke on Friday at a summit of the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena).
Balancing an isolated island grid
Pappoutis said maintaining the balance between supply and demand, and therefore system frequency, is critical for a small, isolated island grid. He said a greater challenge is balancing an isolated system as distributed generation from renewable energy sources increases.
Cost impact and lack of interconnection
He said that in Cyprus, increased conventional production is used in the morning and afternoon to balance demand and supply, raising electricity costs because the country has no interconnection with any other country.
Call for greater user involvement
Pappoutis called for a “change of culture and greater active involvement of energy users” in energy management systems to provide flexibility. He said this would “ensure and strengthen the stability and resilience of the network’s operation.”
How do you think energy users could become more actively involved in energy management systems?