Prepare for takeoff : Assessing the impact of electricity price variations on electric aviation potential at Visby airport

The electrification of the transport sector is an ongoing process that is aimed to reduce the global emissions of greenhouse gases. Electric aviation is one branch that is emerging by implementation of battery electric aircrafts. Due to weight issues, electric aircrafts are smaller than traditional aircrafts which leads to an opportunity for more regional aviation. One area where this is especially interesting is the island of Gotland. Electric aircrafts also experience challenges at the airport. The aircrafts require high power to keep the charging time minimal which leads to a large strain on the grid. Therefore, it is interesting to examine how the energy system at Visby airport can be designed regarding production and storage and how different charging strategies can be implemented. Another important aspect is the cost of charging as the electricity price becomes central for electric aircrafts competitiveness. To examine how the electricity price in the future, 2030, affects the cost of operation at Visby airport with different setups for the energy system, a Simulink model of the grid was created alongside a linear prediction model for the future electricity price. The results show that a charging strategy with overnight charging gives the lowest net energy use from the overhead grid at 3,72 MWh per day. The electricity price in 2030 was predicted based on three estimation years with different characters: 2017, 2022 and 2024. The cost for the 24-hour operation is heavily dependent on charging strategy and estimation year which makes the total cost to vary from 3840 EURO at max down to 71 EURO as min. The fuel price per passenger is also dependent on charging strategy and estimation year and the results are ranging from 2,64 down to 0,57 EURO. Comparing with jet fuel, the price per passenger is 1,36 EURO. To conclude, the choice of charging strategy has a big impact on the strain on the grid and the total cost of operation. The future electricity price will also play a part in what choice of energy system at Visby airport that is suitable. Lastly, regarding ticket prices, electric aviation can be competitive depending on charging strategy and price development in the future within this context.