INTRODUCTION
Nowadays electricity plays an important role in
almost every sphere of life. With the increase in fuel
prices, it is hard to produce electricity with low prices
and most of the people cannot afford the increasing
price in electricity. On the other hand demand and
supply management is becoming an increasingly
difficult task with increasing population. This is
particularly a great concern for the people living in
very remote areas [1].
Renewable Energy Resources (RERs) are very
suitable for the above mentioned mini grids. Wind,
solar and hydal power generation systems are
examples of RERs. The renewables are cost effective
and environment friendly, however the main problem
associated with such resources is power fluctuation
and requirement of energy storing devices i.e. dry
cell batteries etc. which are costly.
The efficiency of the power grid system plays key
role for the environment. Various methods and
techniques are used to improve the power system
stability and efficiency. Demand Side Management (DSM) can be improved by peak shaving and valley
filling in order to provide frequency regulation and
voltage stability to the system [2], [3], [4].
As the electricity production costs are high during
peak hours, it is imperative to influence the
consumption by making end users a part of control
system [5].
For DSM, Electric Water Heater (EWH) is one of the
most important appliances to consider as in winter
30% of the house load is because of EWH.
Furthermore, it is noticed that the behavior of peak
load of EWH is same as the overall peak load so it is
one of the best candidates to consider for DSM.