Sustainable Energy Planning for Community Microgrids Considering Economic, Environmental, and Resilience Factors

This study presents a framework for sustainable energy planning of community microgrids (MGs), integrating optimal design and decision-support tools. A rural community in New South Wales, Australia, is considered as a case study for this investigation. The proposed microgrid framework is evaluated based on economic viability, environmental sustainability, and community resilience. The economic analysis reveals an attractive net present cost of $3.26 million over the MG's 25-year lifetime, with a competitive levelized cost of energy of $0.196 per kWh. The environmental impact assessment quantifies a significant reduction of 394.429 tonnes of <tex xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">$CO_{2}{-}$</tex> equivalent greenhouse gas emissions annually through the integration of 200 kW of solar photovoltaic and 258 kW of wind turbines. The resilience assessment demonstrates a high energy reliability with zero unmet loads facilitated by backup systems and decision-making tools. The findings contribute to the field of sustainable energy planning by providing a comprehensive and integrated approach that addresses the complex interplay of economic, environmental, and resilience factors in the context of community MGs.