Thesis - Evaluation of a Hydro Power System Production Planning Model

Vattenfall A/S; Solna kommun; On-site; SEK 400 000 - 600 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading energy company in Sweden is offering a thesis project focused on evaluating a hydropower system production planning model. Students in relevant master's programs are invited to apply. Responsibilities include data preparation, testing various parameters, and comparing different modeling approaches. This position is ideal for innovative individuals eager to contribute to sustainable energy solutions.

Qualifications

• Soon to be graduated from studies.
• Experience with modeling, simulation, and optimization.
• Education in relevant field.

Responsibilities

• Assess published hydropower optimization model and compare with in-house model.
• Prepare required input data and set up test cases.
• Test sensitivity to different input parameters.

Skills

Modeling

Simulation

Optimization

English

Education

Master's in Engineering physics or Electric Engineering

Job description

Overview

Thesis - Evaluation of a Hydro Power System Production Planning Model

• Full-time
• Energy Solutions
• Solna
• Student

REF10529Y

About the thesis

Vattenfall R&D is responsible for conducting business driven technical development that creates value for the company and helps us realize Vattenfall’s strategy. We develop cost effective, safe and sustainable solutions to improve the infrastructure of Vattenfall assets including Hydro, Wind, Nuclear, SKB, Heat, and Distribution.

Production Planning Optimization Models for hydropower systems have a profound usage at Vattenfall in the operational planning of the assets and as a support tool in e.g. outage planning, investment studies and environmental studies. For this both commercial tools and in-house developed tools are utilized. The in-house tools are under constant development based on needs in different studies and the inspiration for this development sometimes come from the research community.

This master thesis work will assess a published hydropower optimization model [1] and compare it with the in-house model at Vattenfall R&D. This will involve preparation of the required input data, setting up a suitable set of test cases, execute the cases and evaluate the result. Since part of the input consist of relations not presently available, also estimation of these relations from different data sets will be part of the work. In addition, testing the sensitivity to different input parameters will be part of the scope.

An implementation of the published model is available online via GitHub and is written in the Julia language. The software developed for the assessment during the thesis work may also be written in Julia. However, the in-house model is written in Matlab so another option is to implement the published model in this environment. The best alternative will be decided early in the project based on initial findings during the project start-up.

[1] H. Ek F e4lth, N. Mattsson, L. Reichenberg, F. Hedenus. Trade-offs between aggregated and turbine-level representations of hydropower in optimization models. Renew Sustain Energy Rev 2023; 183:113406 (2024).

• The goal of the thesis project is to assess the benefits of some features of the published hydropower optimization model not yet present in the in-house model.
• This assignment is for 1 student

Qualifications

Your profile

We are looking for students to join our journey towards a fossil free future. You are soon to be graduated from your academic studies. You also identify yourself with our principles: active, open, positive and safe.

• Education – Any of the following master programs or similar: Engineering physics, Electric Engineering, or similar programs
• Scope - 30hp
• Written and spoken English
• Experience with modeling, simulation and optimization

Additional Information

• Start of assignment: 2026-01-15 or by agreement
• Location: Solna/Älvkarleby by agreement
• Application – a combined document with your CV and grades are to be submitted in the application.
• Deadline for application is 2025-10-26.
• Contact person and supervisor at Vattenfall is: Jonas Funkquist [e-mail] [phone]

Diversity & Inclusion

In everything we do, we believe diverse teams can outperform homogeneous teams. Read more about our important work on diversity & inclusion https://careers.vattenfall.com/about-us/diversity-and-inclusion/

About Vattenfall

We have been electrifying industries, powering homes and transforming life through innovation and collaboration for more than 100 years. Empowered by our goal, we are determined to enable fossil free living within one generation. To succeed we, as one of Europe's leading energy companies, must be fossil-free ourselves.

Join us in our journey towards a fossil-free life within one generation.

Want to learn more about what we do? Visit www.vattenfall.com.

Since Vattenfall is a part of the Swedish critical infrastructure, many of our services are security classed. If this position is security classed the final candidates might be subjected to a security vetting process, according to the Swedish legislation.

Company Description

Power Climate Smarter living - that’s our purpose. We are looking for the brightest students to make this happen. Together you will contribute to a fossil free future. You will have a unique position to contribute to our purpose. All we ask from you is to use your Superpowers and share your energy to help us achieve our goal.