Fast Charging Stations - Power and Ancillary Services Provision

High penetration of variable renewable sources act as a heavy burden on conventional power system management and operation. Uncertainty in power systems expanded from demand side to generation side as well. Since new sources of imbalances have entered power system, it should be reorganized, automated and modernized. New providers of flexibility should be recognized and used in future power system planning and design. One of the possible technologies that can be used for flexibility provision are electric vehicles. Numerous fast charging stations are installed all over the world and such trend will continue in future. Depending on their operation, charging stations can act as flexibility providers but they can also further degrade system's flexibility if installed without any kind of energy buffer. This paper will present mixed integer linear model for flexibility studies of modern power systems with high penetration of variable renewable sources and electric vehicles. Results clearly show that smart planning of fast charging infrastructure can bring huge benefits to power system concerning costs, emissions, and variable renewable power curtailment.