Planning of micro-combined heat and power systems in the Portuguese scenario

High efficiency cogeneration is seen by the European Commission as part of the solution to increase energy efficiency and improve security of supply in the internal energy markets. Portuguese residential sector has an estimated technical market potential of around 500 MWe for cogeneration of <150 kW(e) in size. Additionally, in Portugal there is a specific law for power production in low voltage, where at least 50% of the produced electric energy must be own consumed and the maximum power delivered to the power utility should be less than 150 kW(e). Therefore, generic application tools cannot be applied in this regard. In this work, we develop the MicroG model for planning micro-CHP plants in agreement with the Portuguese energy legal framework. The model is able to design, evaluate and optimize from the techno-economic point of view any micro-CHP plant. MicroG appeals to some data bases, such as micro-cogeneration technologies and power consumption profiles that are also described. In addition, a practical case on a gym is considered to show all the functionalities of the model. The developed model has proven to be extremely useful from the practical point of view. This model could help the development of the micro-CHP Portuguese market, which in turns contributes to accomplish the targets of Kyoto protocol and EU cogeneration Directive. Other improvements to MicroG model can be made in order to enlarge the range of application to other micro-cogene ration technologies and to accomplish with the CO2 emissions trading. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.