Deployment strategy of PV-ESS for industrial and commercial electricity users with consideration of carbon benefits

As the global shift away from fossil fuels intensifies, distributed photovoltaics (PV) have emerged as the most significant and swiftly expanding renewable energy source accessible to end-users due to their convenience in flexible deployment. Coupled with the steep decline in energy storage costs, the co-deployment of PV and energy storage systems (PV-ESS) has become a preferred option for electricity users, especially large ones. The PV-ESS investment decision-making model is encountering new obstacles stemming from the gradual withdrawal of governmental subsidies and the swift transition of electricity and carbon markets. To address the pressing requirement for investment in PV-ESS for industrial and commercial users, this paper introduces an improved capacity configuration model for PV-ESS that incorporates carbon benefits into its considerations. First, we constructed a cost-benefit analysis model for industrial and commercial users investing in PV-ESS. Second, we proposed a capacity optimization model for maximizing annual returns as its objective function. Finally, to validate this model, we conducted case studies across various typical scenarios to explore optimal configurations and investment returns. The results indicate that within the existing market framework, achieving optimal return on investment for PV-ESS is challenging. However, incorporating carbon benefits can significantly enhance system configuration and investment returns. Specifically, carbon emissions decrease by 23.84% under a low carbon price scenario and by 50.91% under a high carbon price scenario, while the net present value increases by 67.98% and 941.96%, respectively. This study can shed fresh insights for industrial and commercial users and policy-makers for the deployment of PV-ESS.