Optimization of energy exchange in microgrid networks: a coalition formation approach

In this paper, we elaborate a new strategy based on cooperative game theory models to encourage and manage the interactions in a MicroGrid network. The proposed strategy optimizes the cooperation and the energy exchange in a distributed μ Grid network. The strategy consists of a two stage algorithm: Coalition formation algorithm which was specifically created to approximate the optimal set of coalitions that return considerable savings. And the Matching game to manage the energy exchange inside each coalition. The performance of our strategy was verified through simulations. These latter show that the losses can be considerably decreased by the use of the proposed strategy: the rate of the loss reduction can reach up to 20% if the two stages are applied on the network. Moreover, the strategy proved to have a fast convergence which makes it operational for real implemented networks.