Abstract

Power losses in distribution networks have increasingly resulted in economic loss during power delivery to consumers. In order to reduce such losses Distributed Generation (DG) connection to distribution systems have been identified as a means of solving such problem if properly placed in the networks. It is therefore, necessary to include power loss minimization as objective during planning and operation of distribution systems. This paper summaries various optimization methods utilized by researchers for power loss reduction with a view of giving an update in the area and at the same time identifying missing gaps such as investigations on varying nature of loads, development of dynamic placement techniques and improvement on heuristic optimization algorithms as further works for the maximization of the benefits associated with DG as well as minimizing its negative impacts on the entire distribution network.