The thesis of this study was that high levels of small scale embedded generation (SSEG), specifically dCHP, can contribute positively to the UK’s liberalised electricity industry whilst delivering benefits to all stakeholders including the consumer, the supplier, the Distribution Network Operator (DNO) and the UK Government’s 2010 energy targets. The research reports the benefits and detriments of dCHP and examines the technical, economic, environmental and regulatory challenges that dCHP faces. Software simulation techniques are used to model network interaction for increasing amounts of connected dCHP over a range of conditions and operational criteria. The existing Distribution Network (DN) was not designed to accommodate large deployments of SSEG. Levels of dCHP that the existing DN can accommodate are derived and possible strategies to overcome these barriers are then proposed to optimise dCHP integration. Economic modelling is used to assess the financial argument for dCHP and the impact on the main stakeholders. The sensitivity of the economic case is examined for changes in market conditions. dCHP is then compared economically to other domestic energy efficiency measures. Regulatory obstacles are examined and possible strategies to overcome these barriers are proposed. The environmental credentials of dCHP are scrutinised and contrasted with alternative energy efficiency measures. Ultimately, it was found that dCHP is unlikely to contribute significantly to the UK Government’s 2010 targets. Despite having many inherent attributes that would contribute positively to the UK electricity industry, dCHP still has to overcome significant political, regulatory and economic barriers before its full potential can be realised.

There are a variety of marine energy converters under development with full-scale prototypes currently being tested in the open sea. One of the most important steps to help the devices reach the commercial market is to find the optimal sites for development. This involves identifying areas of suitable marine energy resource, determining a route to network and locating network capacity for the new generation. Network access is a major constraint to the development of marine energy so it is essential to select areas that make the best use of the resource and network capacity available to get the first generation of devices into the water. This study has addressed these challenges to advance the understanding of the recoverable resource and encourage investment and confidence in the new marine energy industry. The work reported describes the assembly of a new Geographical Information System (GIS) model that contains a comprehensive range of data for the marine environment. Spatial analysis techniques were employed to analyse the data subject to the majority of the constraints on siting wave energy converters (WECs). This enables the location and quantification of the recoverable wave energy resource. Least cost path analysis was utilised to optimise the route of the submarine cable from WEC to shore while taking bathymetric, seabed, environmental and economic constraints into account. Power flow analysis was carried out on sections of the Scottish electricity network to determine the location and amount of available network capacity for new generation. This analysis was integrated with the GIS to create a unique GIS/power flow model that is utilised to optimise the network integration of wave energy. The model has been used to identify the wave energy resource in closest proximity to available network capacity. Economic analysis is also carried out to provide an economic appraisal of wave energy projects and the route to the network. The outcomes of the study using the developed GIS model allow optimisation of the delivery of marine energy to the electricity network and are used to provide an appraisal of wave energy development in Scotland.

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The liberalisation of the electricity market and the political will to increase the percentage of renewable energy in the generation mix has led to favourable conditions for “green” energy. Scotland is particularly rich in wind and marine energy resources and the thesis of this study was that the country could meet a significant portion of its future demand for electricity from renewable sources. In this study, the location of onshore wind, offshore wind, wave and tidal current resources in Scotland and the physical, environmental and planning constraints for their development were mapped and the lifetime production costs of electricity generation at feasible locations were predicted. For a number of economically ranked renewable generation scenarios, hourly time series of power over a consecutive period of three years were analysed. The study showed that despite their variable nature, renewable sources could be developed so that they supply, on average, 40% of the Scottish demand for electricity by 2020. The study also showed that there will be many hours in a year when renewable generation does not coincide with demand resulting in excess or shortfall. Diversification of sources and their geographical dispersion are measures to achieve better matching. Further mitigation is possible through dedicated dispatching of hydro and pumped storage plant and through management of the power system.

The main objective of this study is to survey the market prospects of non-conventional power-generating and transforming equipment in the Pacific Rim, a region where most of the newly industrialised and oil producing countries are found. The Asia and Pacific region is pioneering the application of, and trade in, non-conventional energy equipment. Partly because they have been at the forefront of developing both the technology and the markets for the products under review, and partly because of their potential as producers, users, traders, the following countries have been selected for study: Indonesia, the Philipines, Thailand, and Malaysia. The technologies covered are: solar photovoltaic systems, small hydropower, wind energy, solar thermal, and biomass (fuelwood/charcoal, biogas, digesters, and biomass gasifiers). In implementing an analysis of this nature, a multi-disciplinary approach must be undertaken. Therefore, this thesis not only examines the technical aspects but the social, political, economic, and environmental consequences of the utilisation and dissemination of renewable energy systems. In order to discover the role that renewable energy systems play in each country, the overall energy context must be understood. Too often energy systems analysis and planning is done in an insular fashion, with conventional energy usage and planning accomplished separately from non-conventional energy systems. In many of the countries studied non-conventional/renewable energy has been handled by an alternative agency, generally one in charge of rural development, and as such, renewable energy systems in the Pacific Rim have not fared as well as they could have.

The three Mekong Basin riparian countries of Thailand, Vietnam and the Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR), situated in South-East Asia, are experiencing many economic and political changes which are creating new opportunities for cooperation and development. This thesis argues that there is a large market for mini-hydropower equipment within Vietnam, and a large market for micro-hydropower plant in Thailand, Vietnam and the Lao PDR. It also contests that future developments will best be served by manufacturing much of the powerhouse equipment within the countries concerned, both in terms of the reduced cost of locally made equipment over foreign imports, and in the support which the local manufacturing base will provide in the form of in-country repair and maintenance facilities. The thesis describes the history and present day situation concerning small-scale hydro development in the three countries, taking into consideration the social, political and economic settings, as well as technological aspects. An assessment is made of the use of mini-hydropower and micro-hydropower equipment in the development of rural electrification, and the prospects for their future use are described in the context of each country's overall rural energy situation. The study assesses the skills and resources available for the manufacture of mini- and micro-hydropower equipment within the three countries with particular focus upon turbines and governors, though including a review of other electrical and mechanical equipment. Trends in the manufacture of hydropower equipment are highlighted and conclusions are drawn from the research with respect to the suitability of different types of hydropower equipment for manufacture in the region. Recommendations are made concerning future manufacture within each country, and ways in which to promote the local manufacture of equipment.

The UK Electricity Supply Industry was sold into private ownership in 1990 and was followed by the flotation of the National Coal Board in 1994. Until this time successive Governments had ensured a market for the coal produced by the National Coal Board by prohibiting the Electricity Supply Industry from purchasing foreign coal and for decades the Electricity Supply Industry had been hostage to the fortunes of the coal industry. At the time of privatisation of the Electricity Supply Industry in 1990 the Government stated that it could no longer guarantee that all of the coal consumed by the new, privately owned Generators would be from British mines. Since these changes, the conventional merit-order for the dispatch of generating plant in mixed-fuel systems has been superseded by scheduling of plant in response to commercial advantage. Gas-fired generation is now used to meet base-load demand, while coal-fired plant, traditionally a base-load generation source, is being forced to take an increasingly mid-merit position. While fuel for base-load generation is bought on long-term contracts, fuel for mid-merit generation is purchased more effectively on the medium-term market. It is therefore becoming more important for Generators to recognise the strategic issues encompassed in medium-term coal purchase and to respond accordingly. The decision to buy coal can be followed through a number of stages from the initial identification of the requirement to make a purchase, through the tendering process to the final selection of suppliers. Understanding a supplier is essential to this process and to making effective organizational buying decisions. Analysis of past performance of coal suppliers at each stage has lead to the application of supplier assessment techniques to the development of a 'Coal Supplier Grading System': Utilisation of this grading system benefits the Generator by assisting the purchaser to ensure that the best suppliers are selected while opportunities offered by new entrants into the market are not missed.

The introduction of electricity is widely perceived to bring socioeconomic and infrastructural improvements to the rural areas of developing countries. In Malaysia the rural electrification programme is a high profile demonstration of the Government's commitment towards socioeconomic development of the rural areas. Following substantial achievements in the rural electrification of Peninsular Malaysia, attention is now focussed on the economically and infrastructurally less-developed states such as Sarawak, on the island of Borneo. The thesis of this study was that the present form of rural electrification is largely inappropriate for the rural development of Sarawak. In response to a perceived need for specific policy-directed rural development research, the consequent aims of this study were to examine the developmental role of rural electrification in the state of Sarawak. Data colected using two extended field trips are presented and discussed in context. The progress of the various programmes is analysed and the significance of the introduction of electricity for life in the rural areas investigated. In addition, priorities and perceptions of the government, implementing authorities, local development administrators and villagers with respect to rural electrification are assessed. The study concludes that, despite government initiatives, acquisition of an electricity supply is a fairly low priority concern for many rural communities. However, the increase in self-esteem and confidence of the community which accompanies a perceived narrowing of the gap between standards of living in town and in the village, is more apparent than predicted. As an outcome of the study specific recommendations are proposed to tackle the electrification of remote settlements in Sarawak.

Externalities exist where costs or benefits are unaccounted for in the market price of a commodity. The market price of electricity in a privatised Electricity Supply Industry such as the UK normally reflects the short term costs associated with producing electricity, rather than the longer term external effects of diversity, sustainability and the environment. UK Government recognition of these externalities has resulted in legislation, economic measures such as taxes and schemes to encourage technologies with perceived lower external cost or added external benefit such as Renewable Energy. This thesis examines the factors constituting externalities within the major electricity producing fuel cycles. Further it is shown that externalities may be specifically quantified at a local level in order to produce optimal welfare distribution. The wind energy fuel cycle is shown to be a prime example of an electricity production method entailing unmeasured externalities. Specific analysis of electricity production from wind is used to develop a computer model, ExWind. ExWind enables the quantification of the associated project externalities which when evaluated together with all other cost and benefit factors provides the optimal project design. Field studies making use of the Ex Wind methodology on existing and planned windfarm sites produce location specific monetary valuations for externalities. These results are in good agreement with previous qualitative studies of windfarm externalities. The genetic wind project optimisation in Ex Wind efficiently yields windfarm layouts significantly better than those designed by humans, while additionally producing optimal welfare distribution.

The United Kingdom's Electricity Supply Industry (ESI) was commercially restructured when it was privatised in 1990. Its long-term future now depends upon the actions of competing companies rather than the political decisions of a nationalised industry. Existing models of the industry have not included these market effects as the added complexity has proved difficult to solve. A new type of model is needed to understand the operation and enable forward planning in the ESI. There are many approaches to forecasting ranging from individuals' opinions to mathematical iterations and, more recently, artificially intelligent techniques. Each of these methods have a place in different modelling environments as each has different characteristics. The thesis of this study suggests that forecasting the fuel mix in the ESI is a large non-linear problem that may only be solved by a Genetic Algorithm (GA) based model. GAs use a combination of selection, breeding and mutation to evolve an optimum solution from a population of possible solutions. This thesis report shows how a global utility function reduced the large set of non-linear equations, that described the ESI, into a single optimisation problem solved by a GA. The GA made repeatable optimisations allowing reliable forecasts of different possible future scenarios. The model was further improved by the inclusion of new genetic operators that reduced volatility and gave the GA a memory of previous generations. The model was validated by matching an ex-post forecast with actual past data. It was then used to analyse the ESI's sensitivity to changing environments. This was achieved by building a picture of the future environment from the combined results of multiple scenario forecasts. Although there were politically sensitive outcomes to some scenarios, electricity generation met demand in every case.