A RELIABILITY PROGRAMMING-MODEL FOR HYDROPOWER OPTIMIZATION

A new reliability model for planning the operation of a multipurpose reservoir for hydropower generation and flood control, which considers the stochastic nature of inflows, is presented. The proposed solution algorithm maximizes the benefits accrued from hydropower generation and minimizes the economic losses incurred due to the reservoir not meeting the required reliabilities for hydropower supply and flood control. This algorithm uses a linearization technique to approximate the nonlinear energy function. An original method of incorporating the energy generation in the formulation of the reliability programming model is presented. This model determines the optimal reservoir release policy along with the optimal reliabilities of satisfying the hydropower demand and providing the required flood control storage. Applicability of the model is demonstrated using Manitoba Hydro data.