Abstract
The growing penetration of solar power technology at low voltage (LV) level introduces new challenges in the distribution grid operation. Across the world, Distribution System Operators (DSO) are implementing the Smart Grid concept and one key function, in this new paradigm, is solar power forecasting. This paper presents a new forecasting framework, based on vector autoregression theory, that combines spatial-temporal data collected by smart meters and distribution transformer controllers to produce six-hour-ahead forecasts at the residential solar photovoltaic (PV) and secondary substation (i.e., MV/LV substation) levels. This framework has been tested for 44 micro-generation units and 10 secondary substations from the Smart Grid pilot in Evora, Portugal (one demonstration site of the EU Project SuSTAINABLE). A comparison was made with the well-known Autoregressive forecasting Model (AR - univariate model) leading to an improvement between 8% and 12% for the first 3 lead-times.

Abstract
This paper discusses mechanisms for establishing an efficient decentralized methodology for the reconstruction of topology in power systems. The maximum mutual information criterion is proposed as a selection criterion for the inputs of a distributed topology estimator, based on mosaic of local auto-associative neural networks. The proposed concepts offer some strong theoretical support for an information theoretic perspective on power system state estimation. The results are confirmed by extensive tests conducted on the IEEE RTS 24-bus system.

Abstract
This paper presents a new stochastic programming model for PAR/PST definition and location in a network with a high penetration of wind power, with probabilistic representation, to maximize wind power penetration. It also presents a new optimization meta-heuristic, denoted DEEPSO, which is a variant of EPSO, the Evolutionary Particle Swarm Optimization method, borrowing the concept of rough gradient from Differential Evolution algorithms. A test case is solved in an IEEE test system. The performance of DEEPSO is shown to be superior to EPSO in this complex problem.

Abstract
This paper presents a new stochastic programming model for PAR/PST definition and location in a network with a high penetration of wind power, with probabilistic representation, to maximize wind power penetration. It also presents a new optimization meta-heuristic, denoted DEEPSO, which is a variant of EPSO, the Evolutionary Particle Swarm Optimization method, borrowing the concept of rough gradient from Differential Evolution algorithms. A test case is solved in an IEEE test system. The performance of DEEPSO is shown to be superior to EPSO in this complex problem. © 2014 IEEE.

Abstract
The future large-scale deployment of electric vehicles (EV) will not only have impact on load growth, but also create opportunities for the electricity sector. Generally, the current methods for security of supply long-term evaluation do not include this new type of load. While the electric components of the generating systems are usually modelled by the Markov process, this paper presents, as its major contribution, an EV model based on the Nonhomogeneous Poisson process, which has been developed in order to better represent the motorized citizen mobility and the EV opportunity to release spinning reserve to electric systems. The simulation procedure lies in combining both Poisson and Markov processes into a sequential Monte Carlo simulation (SMCS) to measure the impact of EV when evaluating the adequacy of generating systems. This evaluation is divided into two complementary concepts: static reserve (generating capacity reserve) and operating capacity reserve. The proposed models are analyzed using a modified version of the IEEE RTS-96 including renewable sources.

Abstract
In the Smart Grid environment, it is expected that Home Energy Management Systems (HEMS) should be capable of managing appliances inside the house, in order to provide reserve services. This paper aims at estimating the flexibility of a Portuguese typical residential load diagram. For this purpose, a bottom-up approach is used, i.e., the aggregated flexible load demand is determined taking into account the availability of each appliance to be controlled by the HEMS. The comfort requirements of the consumers are also incorporated in the flexibility calculations by integrating realistic load models into HEMS.