The SANEDI JET Research Project aims to develop advanced grid planning solutions to assist South African municipalities in managing the integration of distributed energy resources (DERs), such as photovoltaic (PV) systems, electric vehicles (EVs), and battery energy storage systems (BESS).  It addresses several key topics, including the potential grid impacts and corresponding mitigation solutions at both local and system levels, the hosting capacity (HC) limits of existing infrastructure, data requirements for new planning and operational applications, and other risks related to the physical security of distribution systems. The project comprises two key components: a review of international DER planning best practices to extract key lessons for South Africa, and technical studies tailored to local needs.

The research answers critical research questions around the changing landscape of distributed network planning under increasing DER penetration. Some of these questions include:

What are the technical impacts of DERs on local municipality grids?

This project explores the scope and severity of expected technical impacts of DERs on local municipal grids, identifying the penetration conditions at which these impacts are expected. It further investigates best practice mitigation solutions from around the world, particularly from leading countries in DER integration such as Australia, the USA, and Germany.

What are the hosting capacity limits of existing infrastructure to DERs?

This project examines how hosting capacity is assessed, including relevant frameworks, models, and data requirements for comprehensive analysis. It identifies characteristic limits and typical bottlenecks for different types of feeders and analyzes the sensitivity of hosting capacity to various parameters such as loading conditions, feeder length, branching, customer types, and classes.

How can EG integration regulations optimize the integration and utilization of DERs?

This project explores the progress and opportunities within current South African regulations to advance DER integration, particularly addressing the increase in interconnection requests. Recognizing that a deemed-to-satisfy guideline is designed to limit the risk of technical issues, and that detailed studies are resource and time intensive, this research investigates how intermediate criteria can be developed to fast-track the interconnection process.