Mobile multi-energy storage systems versus static and mobile ones for enhancing the resilience of power distribution grids in the presence of high-impact low-probability events

• Novel mobile multi-energy storage system with integrated battery & capacitor bank. • New convex MIQCP model co-optimizing MMESS routing, micro-grids, and DG dispatch. • Achieves > 95% renewable DG penetration in islanded mode. • Reduces load-shedding by 4.30–9.14% and total cost by 4.41–5.98% • Improves emergency voltage quality: 34% reduction in deviation. The widespread use of distributed generations (DGs), particularly renewable DGs (RDGs), dramatically improves the resilience of power distribution grids (PDGs). Conversely, the management of energy for emergency-operated PDGs has been transformed by advances in various energy storage systems (ESSs). Due to the increased likelihood of line outages, consumers experience a decrease in their load during natural disasters. Consequently, this study presents mobile multi-energy storage systems (MMESSs)—a novel technology that integrates battery storage and a switchable capacitor bank on a single mobile platform—to enhance resilience and reduce power outages by sharing excess power among micro-grids (MGs). The analysis is conducted on a 12.66 kV IEEE 33-bus test system with a total peak load of 3.72 MW and 2.23 MVAr. To accomplish this objective, the problem is formulated as a mixed-integer quadratically constrained problem (MIQCP) using the General Algebraic Modeling System (GAMS). The IEEE 33-bus network is used to assess the efficacy of the proposed model across different scenarios. Compared with earlier techniques, such as static energy storage systems and static variable compensators, the results indicate that the capacity of all utilized DGs is at their nominal maximum. This results in a 4.30% reduction in load-shedding, a 4.41% reduction in total costs, and a 5.88% increase in renewable penetration when using the proposed MMESS alongside static storage.