Role of Electric Train Transportation in the Management of Reactive Power in Electricity Networks

Abstract

This paper studies for the first time the (capacitive) reactive power production of traction units operating in the Finnish traction network. In addition to the scales of reactive power produced and factors affecting the production, the quantity of the traction units' reactive fees are determined using the transmission system operator's (Fingrid) reactive power guidelines. These studies are carried out by analyzing the units' actual measured energy consumption data using quantitative and statistical methods. The results show that traction units can produce a considerable amount of reactive power, which can lead to extensive reactive fees. The highest discovered annual reactive fees (per unit type) were 189.3-217.5 k€/a. However, there are significant differences between the unit types in the production of reactive power and the reactive fees.