Sizing of a wind-hydro system using a reversible hydraulic facility with seawater. A case study in the Canary Islands

Highlights: • A model of a wind-hydro system is developed associated to a specific demand. • A particular case on islands with a weak electrical system is simulated. • A reversible seawater-based pumped-hydro system associated to a wind farm is sized. • The economic benefit of the resulting wind-hydro system is calculated. - Abstract: While the climatic conditions of the Canary Islands (Spain) are highly favourable for wind and solar energy exploitation, the low freshwater reserves are a problem when considering the implementation of hydro-based systems. For this reason, the pumped hydro storage (PHS) systems that have been proposed on the islands and which aim to exploit the available freshwater include an additional seawater desalination process. Given this drawback, this paper proposes an original alternative: a reversible PHS facility which directly uses seawater with the system in this case located on the coast of Gran Canaria island. This facility would be used to manage and better integrate the energy generated by a wind farm into a weak insular electrical system. An analysis is also undertaken of the economic benefits the proposed wind-hydro system would entail for the island's electrical system. As a result of the incorporation of the hydraulic unit, the contribution of the wind-hydro system in satisfying electricity demand is 29% higher than if a wind-only system is used. The electrical energy generation cost of the wind-hydro system amounts to 95.34 €/MW h, entailing an annual saving for the electrical system of 7.68 M€/year.