Performance assessment of prospective PV systems in Queensland and New South Wales of Australia

Large-scale renewable energy, especially solar photovoltaic (PV), is increasing into the Australian power network (known as NEM) due to sustainability and environmental benefits. The analysis of energy yield and variability for solar PV at different locations is essential for transmission system operator(s) when making long-term planning for cross-border transmission system design. This work presents the large-scale PV regional models for various potential locations in Queensland (QLD) and New South Wales (NSW) according to the integrated development plan for Australia. The model gives an estimation of PV production with one-hour resolution. The correlation among the variability of PV production at different locations has been established which can be useful for the transmission system operator(s) for future planning of reserve margin for the system. © 2019 IEEE.