Steps towards Decarbonization of an Offshore Microgrid: Including Renewable, Enhancing Storage and Eliminating Need of Dump Load

A novel control strategy to manage the integration of a wind turbine (WT) and an energy storage unit to an existing stand-alone microgrid servicing an oil and gas (O&G) rig is the topic of this paper. The control strategy includes a primary and a secondary controller that, using the battery in tandem with the WT, does not require any dump load (A). The secondary controller includes an energy management system (EMS) which uses the estimated wind production and other specific local information to size the battery to avoid the curtailment of the WT (B) and simultaneously provide the framework for the economic analysis (C). Points A, B and C are the main novelties introduced with this work. Additionally, a primary controller operates the original microgrid source, a gas turbine (GT), at its maximum efficiency through an active power control strategy to lower fuel consumption, by prioritizing the exploitation of the renewable energy source through the combination EMS and battery sizing. The microgrid is simulated and the combined controller of the battery and GT bench-tested.