Microgrids and Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) in Smart Energy Communities and Local Energy Markets

Dear Colleagues,

The Smart Grid intelligently integrates the actions of all actors connected to it in order to efficiently deliver sustainable, economic, and secure electricity supplies. It combines information and communication technology and data science with the electricity network to improve the reliability, security, and energy efficiency and economic efficiency of the power system. To achieve this, massive integration of sensors and devices for data collection across the grid is necessary. While collecting and transmitting data across the grid, it accepts integration of distributed energy resources (DER) and storage systems at any point of the network, especially integration at the consumer/prosumer level, creating the opportunity for any consumer/prosumer on the grid to become an energy/power supplier and take part in energy trading. This is key for the consumer to be converted into an active energy citizen.

Research on empowering energy citizens is being carried out through the ideas of smart buildings, smart energy communities, smart cities, etc. to achieve the target of decarbonizing smart grid. Hence, for the better operation and management, consumers/prosumers with multiple DERs and/or storage systems in the distribution network can be coordinated to form an integrated energy system (IES), for example through local microgrids and virtual power plants (VPPs). Local consumers/prosumers and communities can be engaged with these microgrids and VPPs development with the aim to empower energy citizen or uplift smart energy communities to become “zero net energy” or “energy plus” communities.

In this Special Issue, we invite original and unpublished research work in areas including (but not limited to):

• Innovative design and control of community-based microgrids and VPPs
• Integrating renewable energy, thermal/electrical energy storage, electric vehicles, heat pump integration for a net-zero energy community
• Power quality and energy management in microgrids/VPPs for smart energy communities and local electricity markets
• Participation of community microgrids/VPPs in local grid ancillary services and local energy markets (LEMs)
• Impacts of local microgrids/VPPs/LEMs on the distribution network
• Energy trading between communities (interaction between local energy markets)
• Microgrids in smart buildings (residential, commercial, industrial)
• Techno-economic modelling and optimisation of community and local microgrids/VPPs for market participation and energy services
• Advancement in control for microgrids/VPPs for smart energy communities and local electricity markets
• Advancement in ICT for microgrids/VPPs for smart energy communities and local energy markets (including blockchain, DLT, IoT, etc.)

We kindly invite you to submit your relevant work in the field of “Microgrids and Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) for Smart Energy Communities and Local Energy Markets” for possible publication. This Special Issue represents an opportunity to gather the most recent advances in this field with application to network operation, market participation and empowering energy citizens.

Dr. Shafi Khadem
Dr. Antonios Papaemmanouil
Prof. Dr. Geert Deconinck
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the Special Issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

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