Wildfire Resilient Unit Commitment under Uncertain Demand

Abstract: Public safety power shutoffs (PSPS) are a common pre-emptive measure to reduce wildfire risk due to power system equipment. System operators use PSPS to de-energize electric grid elements that are either prone to failure or located in regions at a high risk of experiencing a wildfire. Successful power system operation during PSPS involves coordination across different time scales. Adjustments to generator commitments and transmission line de-energizations occur at day-ahead intervals while adjustments to load servicing occur at hourly intervals. Generator commitments and operational decisions have to be made under uncertainty in electric grid demand and wildfire potential forecasts. This paper presents deterministic and two-stage mean-CVaR stochastic frameworks to show how the likelihood of large wildfires near transmission lines affects generator commitment and transmission line de-energization strategies. The optimal costs of commitment, operation, and lost load on the IEEE 14-bus test system are compared to the costs generated from prior optimal power shut-off (OPS) formulations. The proposed mean-CVaR stochastic program generates less total expected costs evaluated with respect to higher demand scenarios than costs generated by risk-neutral and deterministic methods.