A. Ireland Electricity System
The Ireland electricity system is a small isolated system,
consisting of two ac interconnected 50-Hz power systems
operated by Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) and Electricity
Supply Board National Grid (ESBNG). The system currently
has a peak load of approximately 6100 MW, and system load is
forecast to grow by between 3% and 4% per annum for the next
six years [15], [16]. Reheat and nonreheat thermal generators,
simple cycle gas turbines, combined cycle gas turbines, and
limited hydroelectric generation, along with a single pumped
storage station, comprise the conventional generation on the
Ireland system at present. The system also has a single HVDC
interconnection to Scotland, with a capacity of 500 MW. However,
it should be noted that it is currently not operated above
400 MW.