Politecnico di Milano and Greening the Islands join forces for the energy transition of small islands
Memorandum of Understanding to develop joint research activities and technical exchanges on the management of island power systems. The collaboration will focus on renewable energy integration, energy storage systems, grid stability and control, hosting capacity, and new flexibility solutions.
The agreement brings together the scientific and technical expertise developed by the Department of Energy in the fields of power systems and smart grids with the experience and international network of Greening the Islands, which is active in promoting the energy transition and sustainability of island territories.
Islands as laboratories for the energy transitionel titolo
Island power systems provide a particularly relevant context for investigating the impacts of the increasing penetration of renewable energy sources.
Their relatively small size, the strong seasonal variability of electricity demand, the progressive deployment of distributed generation and, in some cases, the limited interconnection capacity with larger power systems require a coordinated approach to issues such as generation-demand balancing, frequency and voltage regulation, grid stability, and operational security.
The increasing penetration of renewable generation also requires a progressive rethinking of some traditional paradigms for power system planning and operation. Energy storage systems, advanced inverters, distributed generation monitoring and control, protection systems, and flexibility resources are becoming increasingly integrated components of overall power system management.
Bridging research and real-world applications
The Memorandum of Understanding between the Department of Energy and Greening the Islands has been established within this evolving context.
The collaboration will focus on the development and sharing of analytical methodologies applicable to island power systems, including the identification of case studies and the comparison of different national and international experiences.
Particular attention will be devoted to assessing the capability of power networks to accommodate new renewable generation. The traditional concept of hosting capacity, generally based on the assessment of voltage constraints and the thermal capacity of lines and transformers, becomes more complex when applied to island systems. In these contexts, grid stability, the availability of regulating resources, the contribution of energy storage systems, and the operating conditions of the overall power system may also become determining factors.
A second area of activity will therefore focus on technologies and strategies capable of increasing renewable energy penetration while maintaining adequate levels of system security and reliability. These include Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), grid-forming inverters, advanced monitoring and control systems, adaptive protection schemes, and generation and load forecasting tools.
From technology to flexibility
The collaboration will also address the regulatory aspects associated with the transformation of island power systems.
The increasing availability of distributed generation, energy storage systems, and controllable loads creates opportunities to use flexibility as an alternative or complement to conventional network reinforcement.
Among the solutions of interest are Flexible Connection Agreements, through which the power actually injected by generating units can be modulated according to the operating conditions of the network, as well as approaches based on the coordinated management of generation, storage, and demand.
The implementation of these instruments, however, requires technological solutions to be complemented by quantitative and transparent criteria capable of identifying actual critical system conditions and determining when, and according to which procedures, flexibility resources should be activated.
An international network for comparing experiences and solutions
A key element of the agreement will be the opportunity to combine the research activities of Politecnico di Milano with the international network developed by Greening the Islands.
Comparing island power systems characterised by different sizes, levels of interconnection, generation mixes, and regulatory frameworks will provide an opportunity to identify best practices, replicable solutions, and common methodological approaches, while taking into account the specific characteristics of individual island territories.
The Memorandum also provides for the possibility of promoting joint studies and case studies, working groups, workshops and seminars, scientific publications, position papers, and new project initiatives, fostering dialogue among universities, power system operators, local authorities, industrial stakeholders, institutions, and technology providers.
The overall objective of the collaboration is to contribute to the development of a technical and methodological framework supporting the progressive decarbonisation of island power systems, turning islands into privileged environments for testing innovative solutions that are expected to play an increasingly important role in the evolution of continental power systems as well.
