Application of a Grid Scale Energy Storage
System to Reduce Distribution Network Losses
l
Hedayat Saboori and Hamdi Abdi
I Energy Department, Kermanshah University o/Technology (KUT), Kermanshah, Iran
2 Engineering Department, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran
Abstract- recent progress in advanced energy storage systems
(ESS) and their relative technological maturity imply a promising
future for energy storage. As a consequence, the use of stored
energy to support and optimize the generation, transmission, and
distribution subsystems has been grown up worldwide. One of
the ESS applications is using them for load leveling. Since
network losses is a square function of current, shifting load from
peak to off-peak periods can potentially reduce system losses.
This paper gives a quantitative survey of the possible reduction
in losses, for a situation where distribution feeder load is shifted
in time but not reduced. Load leveling practice will be done by an
ESS unit installed in the distribution substation. Various factors
governing loss reduction such as transformer side installation
(MVlLV) are analyzed. Also, required ESS characteristics like
Ampere-hour (Ah) capacity, current, power, and charge
/discharge speed to ideally leveling the load are presented.
Simulation results show that besides loss reduction, load leveling
has a significant impact on network capacity. In other words,
shifting peak load can defer investment plans considering load
growth in the near future.
Keywords-Distribution Losses, Energy Storage System (ESS),
Load Leveling.
I. INTRODUCT ION
D
elivering electrical power to the consumers in developing
countries is characterized by high energy losses usually.
According to the official reports distribution level has
determined as the primary source of loss in the system [1] .
Losses in the distribution network may be resulted from
various technical and non-technical reasons. The technical
losses stem from passing active and reactive energy through
the distribution network, while the non-technical losses are
caused by errors in the process of metering, reading,
accounting and invoicing, as well as by energy theft by some
customers [1] . As declared in [2] , in addition to economic
consequences, power losses cause production of heat which
increases the temperature of the distribution system
components in turn and can result in insulation breakdown.
Besides the economic gain, lifetime and reliability of the
2
system increase when power losses decrease. Till now,
different techniques for loss minimization, such as automating
the distribution reconfiguration, optimal design and planning
of the distribution system and demand side management, have
become the subjects of intensive research [1,3] .
One of the effective ways to reduce distribution losses is
flattening the load curve. Load leveling or flattening is a
process composed of shaving the peak load and filling the load
valley. Since ohmic losses are a square function of the current
flow, using load leveling to shift some of this current or load
from the peak period to off-peak period decreases the net
losses, which can offset some of the storage losses. In addition
to the squared current correlation that improve loss reduction
by shifting a part of load from the peak to off-peak period, two
other factors help this loss reduction and increase its value
including: the resistance of distribution wires and transformers
is lower at off-peak periods (lower temperature) and the cost
of the energy (and losses) is generally lower during off-peak
periods [3-7] .
Recent progress in advanced energy storage systems (ESS)
and their relative technological maturity imply a promising
future for energy storage. As a consequence, the use of stored
energy to support and optimize the generation, transmission,
and distribution subsystems has been grown up worldwide.
Key factor to implementing a load leveling project is an
energy storage system [8-13] . Among various ESS
technologies like Hydraulic Pumped Energy Storage (HPES),
Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES), Flywheel Energy
Storage (FWES), Superconductor Magnetic Energy Storage
(SMES), Battery Energy Storage System (BESS),
Supercapacitor or Ultracapacitor energy storage (SCES), and
Hydrogen along with Fuel Cell (HFC) storage system, a
battery system can properly fulfill the requirement for a load
leveling application [14] . Grid scale battery electricity storage
devices are now commercially available and can be placed
anywhere on the grid to level the load [15] .
This paper sheds light on reducing losses in a primary radial
distribution feeder by means of an ESS through load leveling.
The studied feeder consists of a medium-voltage line
connected to a MV/LV distribution transformer. We have
discussed about daily and yearly saved energy with respect to
 2

demanded power and energy. Also, the factors governing Fig. I. How load leveling reduces losses [7]

added value to the system and side of transformer ESS Ideal load leveling can be achieved through fmding average
installation effect are analyzed. In addition, the required load current. In other words, the best leveled load is a straight
characteristic of the ESS are discussed in detail. The line equal to average load. Load current deviation from the
remainder of paper is as follow: after this brief introduction, average load should be adjusted by ESS. Load currents below
section II states the theoretical basis behind the proposed average will be increased to reach average value by charging
method for loss reduction. Section III describes the studied ESS and on the other hand, load currents above average will
system and section IV reports the simulation results and be compensated through discharging stored energy. Thus, the
discussions. At last, section V declares the conclusion remarks average load current and corresponding ESS current will be
of the work. equal to:
T
IILoad(,)
II. THEORET ICAL BAS IS lAve .!...I�=,-I
Load =
___
(3)
T
Since distribution technical losses are a function of the
square of the load current, shifting any part of load from peak
to off-peak period results in a net reduction of losses (Fig.l)
IESS(I) =ILoad(l) - It;; =ILoad(I) T
(4)
[7] . A simple single diagram of the studies network is shown
in Fig. 2. As diagram shows, the network is composed of a where ILoad ,I t:oad and IESS(t) are load current, average load
'

primary medium voltage feeder connected to a MY/LV current, and ESS current, respectively. As shown in Fig. 2 we
transformer; the transformer supply downstream loads through can install ESS both side of the transformer i.e. MY and LV.
secondary feeders in turn. In general, the total loss for a time In case of installing ESS in the MY side of transformer,
period with and without load shifting can be formulated as: leveled load current will pass from the line only. Thus, passed
T
Loss =IR(t).J(t)2 (1) load current through transformer will be unchanged and we
have line loss reduction only (Fig. 3.A). But, if we install ESS
T in the transformer LV side, leveled load current besides line
LossLeveled =I R(,).(1(I) + 1 ESS(1»2 (2)
I�I will be passed through transformer. In this case, loss reduction
where will take placed in both line and transformer (Fig. 3.B).
Loss Network losses Mathematical formulation for network losses is expressed for
LOSSLel'eied Network losses with leveled load current both cases in the following. By expanding (1,2) and
R (I)& 1(1) Resistance and current at time t substituting (3,4):

Power or
Cur ent Loss �s:-Side =[�RLine(1).(1Locd(l) + ESS(I
1 »2 ]

+ [�RTftll1S(t).(1Load(ty]

Aver3ge+ r �r__
Line
______ ________
=[�RLine(t).(1�)2 ] + [�RTiWlS(I).(1Load(l/ ] (5)

Loss f�s_
slde =[�RLme(1).(1Load(I) + ESS(1»2
1 ]
Time

+[�RTIWlS(I).(1Locd(t) + ESS(1»2
1 ]
hss(,) Energy storage system current at time t (6)
T
=I [(RLine(I) + RTiWlS(t) ).(1Load(t) + ESS(t»2
1=1
1 ]
T
=I [(RLine(I) + RTiWlS(t) ).(1 t;; )2 ]
I�I

where L ESS
ass MV -Side and L
ESS
ass LV -Side are network I osses .m case

of installing an ESS in MV or LV side of the transformer

respectively. Also, RLine(l) and RTiWlS(I) are distribution line
and transformer equivalent resistance, respectively.

L03d /1 '$", =
Reduction�
L ( -1
I II
 3

III. CASE DESCR IPT ION
As mentioned earlier, single line diagram and single phase
equivalent circuits of the studied case are shown in Fig. 2 and
Fig. 3. The primary distribution feeder is a medium voltage
20KV line which initiates from the upstream subtransmission
substation. It consists of three ACSR conductor of type Fox
with 0.78 ohm per kilometer resistance and length 20
kilometers. Also, distribution transformer is a MViLV
transformer with voltage ratio 20KV /004 KV. It has 1600 KV
A percent is constant but its net value increase in accordance
nominal apparent power, Dyn5 connection and 9.75 ohm per
phase equivalent resistance. For simplicity, we don't consider
transformer no-load loss because of its negligible value. Also,
we assume constant resistance for both line and transformer.
Applied load data is a hour by hour, yearly data based on [\6]
which its peak value scaled to transformer rating (1600 KVA).
Hourly load variations during the year and daily demanded
energy are depicted in FigA and Fig. 5, respectively. As
mentioned earlier, two different scenarios including MY-side
and LV-side Installed ESS are considered and obtained results
analyzed.
declined from 490.99 to 475.97 with a LV-side ESS and ideal
load leveling. Yearly saved energy and percent of loss
reduction are reported in Table II and Table III, respectively.
As Table II shows, relocating ESS from MV to LV side can
compensate 404 MWh lost energy in the transformer. From
Table III, it can be concluded that ideal loss reduction percent
for every equipment in the network is equal to 3.0595. It
should be noted that with increasing line length loss reduction
with line length.
2000
� 1500
�'"
"d
� 1000
�

MV/LV
Secondary
500
� ______ __
Primary
Feeder____ __��
�� �� �
OynS Feeders
400
25

Subtransmission r-t-----+
Substation Day of Year
o 0 Hour of Day

Fig.2.Single line diagram of the studied network Fig.4.Hour-by-hour daily load

� ,---�---,----,--.--�--�

Leveled Current 30 ....................... ..............................

.
::c
� 28

'"
e.o 26

A. MV-Side ESS �
." 24

]
� 22

�
�

.� 20

�
I-I---llli2:flg-+-��J2Q-+---��u rrent
18

Day ofYeaT

Fig.5.Daily demanded energy

Fig.3.Per phase equivalent of the studied network

Table I.Yearly losses ( MWh & Percent)

Line &
Line Transformer
IV. S I MULAT ION RESULTS Transformer

Before MWh 346.58 144.41 490.99

Total yearly demand is equal to 8.5878 GWh. Table I shows ESS Percent 4.0357 1.6815 5.7172
the yearly values for the network. In shows the yearly net MV-Side MWh 335.98 144.41 5.5937
value and percent of network losses with and without load After ESS Percent 3.9122 1.6815 480.39
leveling. Losses are separated for both MV-side and LV-side ESS LV-Side MWh 335.98 139.99 475.97
ESS Percent 3.9122 1.6301 5.5423
ESS installation cases. As results show, whole network losses
 4

Table I I Yeany saved energy ( MWh) Final finding are ones relate to ESS and its characteristics.
&
Line Transformer
Line
Required Ampere-hour (Ab) to ideally leveling the load is
Transformer
given in Table V where we need a 110.4070 or 5520.4 Ab
MV-Side ESS 10.6 0 10.6 storage system in MV or LV side. This difference between
MV and LV side ESS characteristics simply can be explained
LV-Side sESS 10.6 4.4 15.02
through transformer ratio. By multiplying each MV-side value
such as MV-side Ab at transformer ratio (20/0.4=50) LV-side
Table Ill.Yearly percent of loss reduction equivalent will be obtained. With the same manner other
Line & required ESS characteristics can be calculated from one side to
Line Transformer
Transformer
another. Also, Fig. 7 shows the average ESS state
With Respect
0.1235 0 0.1235 (charge/discharge) during the day hours where ESS current is
MV-Side to Load
ESS With Respect
proportional to load variation. As we expect and respecting
3.0595 0 3.0595 load variations in Fig. 1, at load hours below average load
to Loss
With Respect current, ESS will be in charge state and in contrary at load
0.1235 0.05 0.1749
LV-Side to Load hours above average load current, ESS will be in discharge
ESS With Respect
3.0595 3.0595 3.0595 state. Finally, Tables VI to VIII show the required ESS
to Loss
current, power, and speed, respectively.
Sorted daily net saved energy for line, transformer, and both
15
of them is depicted in Fig. 6. Also, minimum, average, and
maximum daily percent of loss reduction with respect to daily
loss are equal to 1.6489, 2.9005, and 3.8348 percent, 10
respectively. $
"E
Besides loss reduction, load leveling can have a significant �::l 5
impact on releasing network capacity. Although this impact U
Charge Area
was out of paper focus but results are given in Table IV and CIl
CIl
Fig. 8. As we know, leveling the load can release network �
d) 0
capacity at least 195.622 and at most 384.724 KVA out of its 1l
CIl
Discharge
nominal 1600 KVA which means a reduction between 12.226 :>
Area
and 24.04 percent daily. ::iii -5

_10 ��-L������-L-L��-L��
9U --------------------------------------------------------------------------------. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 101112131415161718192021222324
Hour of Day
80 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------- . Fig.7.ESS charge and discharge current state ( MV -side)

�
.Q
70 -.-.-.-.-.-.----------------------.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.------------------ -.-.-.-.-..
Table V ESS required Ah for both sides
� Line & Transformer
>. 60 -.-.-.-.-.-.------------------------.-.-.-.-.--------- Min Average Max

OIJ
....(1) ,
• I Net(KVA) 110.4070 75.9169 38.3948
50 -------------------------------------------- -----------:---------,.#---------.
�
s:::l
"D 40 ------------------------------------
Lme,.."
.. '
-----------,*'--------------------------.
I Percent 5520.4 3795.8 1919.7

""� .
�
..... Table VI ESS requIred current fIur both Sl'des (A)
�'
('1 ,__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___________.
� 30
_______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _______
Charge Discharge
�-��-
b ...... ,. Transformer -
--
. -;,..-;,;..' ------------------------�-: �-;: :-.-; ;-.-�.iT ..
MiD Avera�e Max MiD Avera�e Max
.... II.-.,-·- - - - - - _ ..
"C;; MV-Side
Cl ..... . �
0 3.1632 15.8261 0 3.1632 11.1
_-��---------:.. ..... .... ..... II..JII--I!�--� �----------------------------------------.
• •••••
ESS
10 __ .

LV-Side
......
..
,.111.- 111"··-
0 158.16 791.305 0 158.16 555.3
�____�__�
OL- __-L____�__�_____L____�__
ESS
o 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400
D�y of Y e�Sorted .
Table V I I ESS requIred ower fIor both Sl'des (KW)
Fig.6.Sorted daily net saved energy Char�e Dischar�e

Min I Avera2e I Max Min I Avera2e I Max

0 I 77.5 I 387.74 0 I 77.4984 I 272.10

Table IV. Network capacIty re ease Table V I I I ESS required charge/discharge speed for both sides
Min Average Max Char�e A) Dischar�e A)
Min Avera�e Max Min Avera�e Max
Net(KVA) 195.622 284.837 384.724
MV-Side
0 0.312 7.332 0 0.312 5.237
Percent 12.226 17.802 24.04 ESS
LV-Side
0 15.610 366.605 0 15.610 261.86
ESS
 5

50 100 150 200 250 300 350

Day of Year

Fig.8. Network capacity release because of load leveling

[9] Z. Xu, X. Guan,Q. S. Jia, 1. Wu, D. Wang, S. Chen, "Performance

V. CONCLUSION
This paper quantifies and proves that shifting load from
peak to off-peak time period will reduce distribution system
losses. In this study only line and transformer have modeled
and their losses with and without ESS installation have
computed. Two scenarios including MY-side ESS and LV­
side ESS are studied and simulation results implied that in
later case, system will experience loss reduction in both line
and transformer. In addition, results show that ohmic loss of
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