Optimal design and financial feasibility of a university campus microgrid considering renewable energy incentives

Highlights: • Microgrid decision support model is developed. • Incentives, tax benefits, and grid ancillary services are considered in the model. • Incentives, tax benefits, and grid ancillary services affect both optimal sizing and financial feasibility. • Optimal microgrid was found to decrease energy cost by 42% and emissions by 15%. Microgrids are gradually being recognized as an important option for sustainable and reliable energy, especially in university and military campuses. In this paper, we investigate the technical and financial feasibility of deploying a microgrid in a university campus. We consider various incentives such as renewable energy investment-based incentives, tax benefits, and grid ancillary services. In this study, we developed a microgrid planning model, called Microgrid Decision Support Tool (MDSTool). The model is structured into two sub-models—performance and economic models. Performance model simulates the optimal operation of the microgrid and is used to analyze energy usage and investigate technical feasibility. The economic model calculates all the system cash flows, its purpose is to determine the optimal sizing of distributed energy resources and financial feasibility. The overall model is used to design a campus microgrid at Seoul National University, South Korea. The results show that renewable energy incentives, tax benefits, and grid ancillary services influence both the financial feasibility and renewable energy penetration in a microgrid.