EMK:Generators

The generators are entered individually into EMarket. There are three different types of generators;

• Generic (these are thermal, geothermal and wind)
• Hydro Station (simple one storage, one inflow type)
• Hydro System (complex multi station/reservoir hydro generators)

Many of the generator types have elements in common such as Name, Version, Node.

The Generator Window has the following components:

1. A 'Common Generation Data Area' which is identical for all generator types
2. An area containing type specific data

Common Generator Data Area

Name	Used to reference the generator in Schedules, Formulae and Output Data
Version	The Version name for this Generator Resource Instance
Description	Free text field for information about the Generator
Gen Class	Generator type (Generic, Hydro Station or Hydro System) When changing this input a prompt window is displayed, as this may result in some of the information previously entered for the resource being lost.
Node	The Node where the Generator injects power into the Grid.
Comm Date	Commissioning Date - the first date upon which the Generator could submit Offers. This field allows you to model a Generator as coming on stream at a particular time in the future.
Moth Date	"Mothball" date - the last date upon which the generator can submit Offers. this date should be set well into the future for generators which are likely to run indefinitely.
Gen Type	Type of Generator, e.g. Steam Turbine
Fuel Type	Fuel used by Generator, e.g. Coal
Efficiency %	Describes the efficiency of the Generator. (Not used by EMarket but can be accessed to calculate fuel burn based on Generation Output.
Non Fuel M.C. ($/MWh)	This figure is used to calculate operating costs for Hydro Generators.
Max Output (MW)	The maximum output of the station.
Unit Size (MW)	The capacity of component units in MW. This is used when calculating Reserve risk and Reserve dispatch. You should enter a unit size of zero if the Generator will not be modelled as a Reserve risk. The Unit Size (MW) setting and the output of a Generator at any given Tick determines the risk set by the Generator.
PLSRSlope	Determines the maximum possible Reserve that can be provided by a plant when Reserves are running, as given by ReserveMax = PLSRslope × Generation. If PLSRslope is zero, then the amount of Reserve that can be provided becomes independent of generation (but still will be less than or equal to the Max Output setting).
Availability	The proportion of the year (0-1) that a Generator is available for Generation. The available days are spread over an entire year regardless of run duration. This is an important point to note, as during short runs where a Generator is unavailable for a large part of the year you might see no generation by that Generator at all during the Run.
Ave Outage Duration (d)	The average number of continuous days that a Generator is unavailable during an outage. It is only effective when the Availability setting is less than 1. The maximum number of continuous unavailable days will depend on the Availability setting.

Generator Type Specific Data

The second component of the Generator Window is specific to each type of Generator.

Generic Generators

The Generic Generator class contains all non-Hydro Generators.

Hydro Systems

Example Generator Window

The Hydro System Generator class models a physical chain of Hydro Generators allowing you to control aspects of both the individual Generators and the System as a whole.

The Hydro System Generator Window has the following components

• Common Generator Data area
• 'Hydro System Parameters' box
• 'View Stations' button

The 'Hydro System Parameters Box' is accessible at the foot of the Generator Window when the Gen Class field is set to Hydro System. This box is used to define the collective generation parameters for all Generators in a system as though they were a single Generator.

Hydro System Parameter Box Fields

Optimise	A True/False field, specifying whether the Hydro System uses the Short-Term River Chain Hydro Optimisation (STRCO) feature included in EMarket
Must Run Price ($/MWh)	This variable is used together with the Flood Price and Flood Level parameters to set a minimum Offer Price.
Flood Price ($/MWh)	The Price a Generator will offer energy once storage has reached flood capacity, (unless it is greater than the Water Value - in which case the Water Value is offered).
Flood level (%Full)	The storage level, entered as a percentage, at which there is a risk of flooding and the Flood Price takes precedence.

Details of the individual Stations making up a Hydro System are accessible through the View Stations Button on the Generator Window. Clicking this button will open up a new window, the Hydro Systems Stations Window. This window lists the stations and Reservoirs of the System in the order which they are in the Hydro System (highest to lowest along the chain). Grouping of individual Stations allows you to model situations where one or more Stations is located on a tributary of the main river chain.

Example Hydro Systems Stations Window

Hydro Systems Stations Window Fields

Group No.	Indicates which (if any) group a Station belongs to. Stations are grouped together to simplify the modelling operations and avoid slowdowns in the Hydro algorithms. Stations grouped together are treated as a single reservoir with storage and generation capacities equal to sum of the capacities of the individual stations in the group.
Group	A Y in the Group field indicates that the Station is grouped with the Station listed immediately above. Group settings cannot be edited for preset systems.
Name	The name of the Hydro Station within the system (cannot be amended for Presets).
Storage (Mm3)	The maximum storage of the Hydro station's reservoir in Mm3.
MW/cumecs	Efficiency of station in MW per cubic meter per second (cumecs or m3s-1) of water flowing past the Generator turbines.
Max Gen (MW)	The maximum generation capacity of the Hydro Station in MW.
Min Flow (cumecs)	The minimum flow of water in cumecs that must past downstream of the station at all times in order to satisfy imposed conditions, for example resource consents).
Inflow Name	The name of any inflow entering the system immediately above this Station (cannot be amended for Presets).
Injection Node	Allows individual Stations in the system to inject at Nodes other than that specified for the whole System in the Node field of the Generator Window. Where this field is left blank, generation for the Station will be injected at the System Node. This feature allows the transmission effects of dispersed Hydro Systems to be more accurately captured.

To enter a new Station or reservoir into the system, select any data cell in the Hydro System Station Window and press the <insert> key. Change the default values in the new row to what you require.

Hydro Stations

Example of Hydro Station

The Hydro Station Generator Class contains all Hydro Generators not belonging to a Hydro System.

The Hydro Station Parameters box lies below the Common Data Area when Gen Class is selected as Hydro Station.

Hydro Station Parameter Box Fields

Max Storage (Mm3)	The maximum storage of the Hydro Station's Reservoir in millions of cubic metres.
MW per Cumec	Specifies how many MW of power are generated for every cumec of water released through the Generator's turbines.
Min Flow (CM)	The minimum flow (cumecs) that must at all times be allowed to flow down the river just below the Station.
Controlled Inflow	Specifies the name given to the controlled inflow in the inflows file that feeds the dam's reservoir. If a Hydro is entirely run-of-river the Controlled Inflow field should be left blank.
Uncontrolled Inflow	Specifies the name given to the uncontrolled inflow in the inflows file that feeds the dam's reservoir. It may be left blank if all inflows are into controlled storage.
Must Run Price ($/MWh)	Specifies the Price in $/MWh, at which the must-run Quantity is offered. The Must-Run Quantity is the generation obtained from the water that must pass through the dam in order to meet the Min Flow constraint.

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