IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/rensus/v107y2019icp274-287.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A comprehensive review on the benefits and challenges of global power grids and intercontinental interconnectors

Author

Listed:
  • Brinkerink, Maarten
  • Gallachóir, Brian Ó
  • Deane, Paul

Abstract

Globally interconnected power grids are proposed as a future concept to facilitate decarbonisation of the electricity system by enabling the harnessing and sharing of vast amounts of renewable energy. Areas with the highest potential for renewable energy are often far away from current load centres, which can be integrated through long-distance transmission interconnection. The concept builds on the proven benefits of transmission interconnection in mitigating the variability of renewable electricity sources such as wind and solar by import and export of electricity between neighbouring regions, as well as on other known benefits of power system integration. This paper reviews existing global and regional initiatives in context of a sustainable future and presents the associated benefits and challenges of globally interconnected power grids and intercontinental interconnectors. We find that while the challenges and opportunities are clearly qualified, actual quantification of costs, benefits and environmental implications of the global grid concept remains in its infancy, imposing a significant gap in the literature.

Suggested Citation

  • Brinkerink, Maarten & Gallachóir, Brian Ó & Deane, Paul, 2019. "A comprehensive review on the benefits and challenges of global power grids and intercontinental interconnectors," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 274-287.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:107:y:2019:i:c:p:274-287
    DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2019.03.003
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364032119301364
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.rser.2019.03.003?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Heard, B.P. & Brook, B.W. & Wigley, T.M.L. & Bradshaw, C.J.A., 2017. "Burden of proof: A comprehensive review of the feasibility of 100% renewable-electricity systems," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 1122-1133.
    2. Connolly, D. & Lund, H. & Mathiesen, B.V., 2016. "Smart Energy Europe: The technical and economic impact of one potential 100% renewable energy scenario for the European Union," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 1634-1653.
    3. Fthenakis, Vasilis & Mason, James E. & Zweibel, Ken, 2009. "The technical, geographical, and economic feasibility for solar energy to supply the energy needs of the US," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 387-399, February.
    4. Thomas, Heiko & Marian, Adela & Chervyakov, Alexander & Stückrad, Stefan & Salmieri, Delia & Rubbia, Carlo, 2016. "Superconducting transmission lines – Sustainable electric energy transfer with higher public acceptance?," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 59-72.
    5. Ettore Bompard & Daniele Grosso & Tao Huang & Francesco Profumo & Xianzhang Lei & Duo Li, 2018. "World Decarbonization through Global Electricity Interconnections," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-29, July.
    6. Al-Asaad, Hassan K., 2009. "Electricity Power Sector Reform in the GCC Region," The Electricity Journal, Elsevier, vol. 22(9), pages 58-64, November.
    7. Grossmann, Wolf D. & Grossmann, Iris & Steininger, Karl W., 2013. "Distributed solar electricity generation across large geographic areas, Part I: A method to optimize site selection, generation and storage," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 25(C), pages 831-843.
    8. Ashish Gulagi & Dmitrii Bogdanov & Mahdi Fasihi & Christian Breyer, 2017. "Can Australia Power the Energy-Hungry Asia with Renewable Energy?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(2), pages 1-26, February.
    9. de Boer, Harmen Sytze (H.S.) & van Vuuren, Detlef (D.P.), 2017. "Representation of variable renewable energy sources in TIMER, an aggregated energy system simulation model," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 600-611.
    10. Lilliestam, Johan & Ellenbeck, Saskia, 2011. "Energy security and renewable electricity trade--Will Desertec make Europe vulnerable to the "energy weapon"?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(6), pages 3380-3391, June.
    11. Alexander E. MacDonald & Christopher T. M. Clack & Anneliese Alexander & Adam Dunbar & James Wilczak & Yuanfu Xie, 2016. "Future cost-competitive electricity systems and their impact on US CO2 emissions," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 6(5), pages 526-531, May.
    12. Engeland, Kolbjørn & Borga, Marco & Creutin, Jean-Dominique & François, Baptiste & Ramos, Maria-Helena & Vidal, Jean-Philippe, 2017. "Space-time variability of climate variables and intermittent renewable electricity production – A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 600-617.
    13. Bertsch, Joachim & Growitsch, Christian & Lorenczik, Stefan & Nagl, Stephan, 2016. "Flexibility in Europe's power sector — An additional requirement or an automatic complement?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 118-131.
    14. Boute, Anatole & Willems, Patrick, 2012. "RUSTEC: Greening Europe's energy supply by developing Russia's renewable energy potential," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 618-629.
    15. Collins, Seán & Deane, J.P. & Ó Gallachóir, Brian, 2017. "Adding value to EU energy policy analysis using a multi-model approach with an EU-28 electricity dispatch model," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 433-447.
    16. Verzijlbergh, R.A. & De Vries, L.J. & Dijkema, G.P.J. & Herder, P.M., 2017. "Institutional challenges caused by the integration of renewable energy sources in the European electricity sector," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 660-667.
    17. Grossmann, Wolf D. & Grossmann, Iris & Steininger, Karl W., 2014. "Solar electricity generation across large geographic areas, Part II: A Pan-American energy system based on solar," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 983-993.
    18. Luca Petricca & Per Ohlckers & Xuyuan Chen, 2013. "The Future of Energy Storage Systems," Chapters, in: Ahmed F. Zobaa (ed.), Energy Storage - Technologies and Applications, IntechOpen.
    19. Edward Halawa & Geoffrey James & Xunpeng (Roc) Shi & Novieta H. Sari & Rabindra Nepal, 2018. "The Prospect for an Australian–Asian Power Grid: A Critical Appraisal," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-23, January.
    20. Mileva, Ana & Johnston, Josiah & Nelson, James H. & Kammen, Daniel M., 2016. "Power system balancing for deep decarbonization of the electricity sector," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 1001-1009.
    21. ., 2018. "Weaving the web of interconnectedness," Chapters, in: All Fall Down, chapter 7, pages 51-57, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    22. Denholm, Paul & Margolis, Robert M., 2007. "Evaluating the limits of solar photovoltaics (PV) in traditional electric power systems," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(5), pages 2852-2861, May.
    23. Aboumahboub, Tino & Schaber, Katrin & Wagner, Ulrich & Hamacher, Thomas, 2012. "On the CO2 emissions of the global electricity supply sector and the influence of renewable power-modeling and optimization," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 297-314.
    24. Chatzivasileiadis, Spyros & Ernst, Damien & Andersson, Göran, 2013. "The Global Grid," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 372-383.
    25. Sharma, Tarun & Glynn, James & Panos, Evangelos & Deane, Paul & Gargiulo, Maurizio & Rogan, Fionn & Gallachóir, Brian Ó, 2019. "High performance computing for energy system optimization models: Enhancing the energy policy tool kit," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 66-74.
    26. Kaundinya, Deepak Paramashivan & Balachandra, P. & Ravindranath, N.H., 2009. "Grid-connected versus stand-alone energy systems for decentralized power--A review of literature," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 13(8), pages 2041-2050, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Giuseppe T. Cirella & Alessio Russo & Federico Benassi & Ernest Czermański & Anatoliy G. Goncharuk & Aneta Oniszczuk-Jastrzabek, 2021. "Energy Re-Shift for an Urbanizing World," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-22, September.
    2. Sattich, Thomas & Freeman, Duncan & Scholten, Daniel & Yan, Shaohua, 2021. "Renewable energy in EU-China relations: Policy interdependence and its geopolitical implications," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    3. Ardelean, Mircea & Minnebo, Philip, 2023. "The suitability of seas and shores for building submarine power interconnections," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    4. Itiki, Rodney & Manjrekar, Madhav & Di Santo, Silvio Giuseppe & Machado, Luis Fernando M., 2020. "Technical feasibility of Japan-Taiwan-Philippines HVdc interconnector to the Asia Pacific Super Grid," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    5. Itiki, Rodney & Manjrekar, Madhav & Di Santo, Silvio Giuseppe & Itiki, Cinthia, 2023. "Method for spatiotemporal wind power generation profile under hurricanes: U.S.-Caribbean super grid proposition," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    6. Fei Guo & Bas J. Ruijven & Behnam Zakeri & Shining Zhang & Xing Chen & Changyi Liu & Fang Yang & Volker Krey & Keywan Riahi & Han Huang & Yuanbing Zhou, 2022. "Implications of intercontinental renewable electricity trade for energy systems and emissions," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 7(12), pages 1144-1156, December.
    7. Hongliang Tian & Liang Zhao & Sen Guo, 2023. "Comprehensive Benefit Evaluation of Power Grid Investment Considering Renewable Energy Development from the Perspective of Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-17, May.
    8. Jurasz, Jakub & Guezgouz, Mohammed & Campana, Pietro E. & Kies, Alexander, 2022. "On the impact of load profile data on the optimization results of off-grid energy systems," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    9. Dan Tong & David J. Farnham & Lei Duan & Qiang Zhang & Nathan S. Lewis & Ken Caldeira & Steven J. Davis, 2021. "Geophysical constraints on the reliability of solar and wind power worldwide," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-12, December.
    10. Galimova, Tansu & Satymov, Rasul & Keiner, Dominik & Breyer, Christian, 2024. "Sustainable energy transition of Greenland and its prospects as a potential Arctic e-fuel and e-chemical export hub for Europe and East Asia," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 286(C).
    11. Ahmed, Faraedoon & Al Kez, Dlzar & McLoone, Seán & Best, Robert James & Cameron, Ché & Foley, Aoife, 2023. "Dynamic grid stability in low carbon power systems with minimum inertia," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 210(C), pages 486-506.
    12. Joel Alpízar-Castillo & Laura Ramirez-Elizondo & Pavol Bauer, 2022. "Assessing the Role of Energy Storage in Multiple Energy Carriers toward Providing Ancillary Services: A Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-31, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Hansen, Kenneth & Breyer, Christian & Lund, Henrik, 2019. "Status and perspectives on 100% renewable energy systems," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 175(C), pages 471-480.
    2. Zappa, William & van den Broek, Machteld, 2018. "Analysing the potential of integrating wind and solar power in Europe using spatial optimisation under various scenarios," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 1192-1216.
    3. Aghahosseini, Arman & Bogdanov, Dmitrii & Barbosa, Larissa S.N.S. & Breyer, Christian, 2019. "Analysing the feasibility of powering the Americas with renewable energy and inter-regional grid interconnections by 2030," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 187-205.
    4. Cole, Wesley & Frew, Bethany & Gagnon, Pieter & Reimers, Andrew & Zuboy, Jarett & Margolis, Robert, 2018. "Envisioning a low-cost solar future: Exploring the potential impact of Achieving the SunShot 2030 targets for photovoltaics," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 690-704.
    5. Yue, Xiufeng & Patankar, Neha & Decarolis, Joseph & Chiodi, Alessandro & Rogan, Fionn & Deane, J.P. & O’Gallachoir, Brian, 2020. "Least cost energy system pathways towards 100% renewable energy in Ireland by 2050," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 207(C).
    6. Reichenberg, Lina & Hedenus, Fredrik & Mattsson, Niclas & Verendel, Vilhelm, 2022. "Deep decarbonization and the supergrid – Prospects for electricity transmission between Europe and China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 239(PE).
    7. Grossmann, Wolf D. & Grossmann, Iris & Steininger, Karl W., 2014. "Solar electricity generation across large geographic areas, Part II: A Pan-American energy system based on solar," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 983-993.
    8. Mads Raunbak & Timo Zeyer & Kun Zhu & Martin Greiner, 2017. "Principal Mismatch Patterns Across a Simplified Highly Renewable European Electricity Network," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-13, November.
    9. Diesendorf, Mark & Elliston, Ben, 2018. "The feasibility of 100% renewable electricity systems: A response to critics," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 93(C), pages 318-330.
    10. Blanco, Herib & Faaij, André, 2018. "A review at the role of storage in energy systems with a focus on Power to Gas and long-term storage," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P1), pages 1049-1086.
    11. Vaiaso, T.V. Jr. & Jack, M.W., 2021. "Quantifying the trade-off between percentage of renewable supply and affordability in Pacific island countries: Case study of Samoa," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    12. Weinand, Jann Michael & Scheller, Fabian & McKenna, Russell, 2020. "Reviewing energy system modelling of decentralized energy autonomy," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 203(C).
    13. Cole, Wesley & Antonysamy, Adithya & Brown, Patrick & Sergi, Brian & Mai, Trieu & Denholm, Paul, 2023. "How much might it cost to decarbonize the power sector? It depends on the metric," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 276(C).
    14. Engeland, Kolbjørn & Borga, Marco & Creutin, Jean-Dominique & François, Baptiste & Ramos, Maria-Helena & Vidal, Jean-Philippe, 2017. "Space-time variability of climate variables and intermittent renewable electricity production – A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 600-617.
    15. Barry W. Brook & Tom Blees & Tom M. L. Wigley & Sanghyun Hong, 2018. "Silver Buckshot or Bullet: Is a Future “Energy Mix” Necessary?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-14, January.
    16. Jenkins, J.D. & Zhou, Z. & Ponciroli, R. & Vilim, R.B. & Ganda, F. & de Sisternes, F. & Botterud, A., 2018. "The benefits of nuclear flexibility in power system operations with renewable energy," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 222(C), pages 872-884.
    17. Maruf, Md. Nasimul Islam, 2021. "Open model-based analysis of a 100% renewable and sector-coupled energy system–The case of Germany in 2050," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 288(C).
    18. Niina Helistö & Juha Kiviluoma & Hannele Holttinen & Jose Daniel Lara & Bri‐Mathias Hodge, 2019. "Including operational aspects in the planning of power systems with large amounts of variable generation: A review of modeling approaches," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Energy and Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 8(5), September.
    19. Federica Cucchiella & Idiano D’Adamo & Massimo Gastaldi, 2018. "Future Trajectories of Renewable Energy Consumption in the European Union," Resources, MDPI, vol. 7(1), pages 1-13, February.
    20. Bartlett, Stuart & Dujardin, Jérôme & Kahl, Annelen & Kruyt, Bert & Manso, Pedro & Lehning, Michael, 2018. "Charting the course: A possible route to a fully renewable Swiss power system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 163(C), pages 942-955.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:107:y:2019:i:c:p:274-287. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/600126/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.