The transition to clean electricity generation is a crucial focus for achieving the current objectives of economy decarbonization. The Balearic Archipelago faces significant environmental, economic, and social challenges in shifting from a predominantly fossil fuel-based economy to one based on renewable sources. This study proposes implementing a renewable energy mix and decarbonizing the economy of the Balearic Islands by 2040. The proposed system involves an entirely renewable generation system with interconnections between the four Balearic islands and the Spanish mainland grid via a 650 MW submarine cable. This flexible electrical exchange can cover approximately 35% of the peak demand of 1900 MW. The scenario comprises a 6 GWp solar photovoltaic system, a wind system of under 1.2 GWp, and a 600 MW biomass system as generation sub-systems. A vanadium redox flow battery sub-system with a storage capacity of approximately 21 GWh and 2.5 GWp power is available to ensure system manageability. This system’s levelized electricity cost (LCOE) is around 13.75 cEUR/kWh. The design also incorporates hydrogen as an alternative for difficult-to-electrify uses, achieving effective decarbonization of all final energy uses. A production of slightly over 5 × 10⁴ tH₂ per year is required, with 1.7 GW of electrolyzer power using excess electricity and water resources. The system enables a significant level of economy decarbonization, although it requires substantial investments in both generation sources and storage.

The recharging of electric vehicles will undoubtedly entail an increase in demand. Traditionally, efforts have been made to shift their recharging to off-peak hours of the consumption curve, where energy demand is lower, typically during nighttime hours. However, the introduction of photovoltaic solar energy presents a new scenario to consider when synchronizing generation and demand curves. High-generation surpluses are expected during the central day hours, due to the significant contribution of this generation; these surpluses could be utilized for electric vehicle recharging. Hence, these demand-side management analyses present important challenges for electricity systems and markets. This research explores this overdemand avenue and presents a method for determining the ideal recharge curve of the electric vehicle. Consequently, with this objective of maximizing photovoltaic generation to cover as much of the foreseeable demand for electric vehicles as possible in future scenarios of the electrification of the economy, the six fundamental electric vehicle charging profiles have been analyzed. A practical scenario for 2040 is projected for the Canary Islands, estimating the potential levels of demand-side management and associated coverage. The coverage ranges from less than 20% to over 40%, considering the absence of demand-side management measures and the maximum displacement achievable through such measures.

The integration of Electric Vehicles (EVs) with solar power generation is important for decarbonizing the economy. While electrifying transportation reduces Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, its success depends on ensuring that EVs are charged with clean energy, requiring significant increases in photovoltaic capacity and robust Demand-Side Management (DSM) solutions. EV charging patterns, such as home, workplace, and public charging, need adapted strategies to match solar generation. This study analyzes a system designed to meet a unitary hourly average energy demand (8760 MWh annually) using an optimization framework that balances PV capacity and battery storage to ensure reliable energy supply. Historical solar data from 22 years is used to analyze seasonal and interannual fluctuations. The results show that solar PV alone can cover around 30% of the demand without DSM, rising to nearly 50% with aggressive DSM measures, using PV capacities of 1.0–2.0 MW. The optimization reveals that incorporating battery storage can achieve near 100% coverage with PV power of 8.0–9.0 MW. Moreover, DSM reduces required storage from 18 to about 10 MWh. These findings highlight the importance of integrating optimization-based energy management strategies to enhance system efficiency and cost-effectiveness, offering a pathway toward a more sustainable and resilient EV charging infrastructure.

Solar and wind resources are critical for the global transition to net-zero emission energy systems. However, their variability and unpredictability pose challenges for system reliability, often requiring fossil fuel-based backups or energy storage solutions. The mismatch between renewable energy generation and electricity demand necessitates analytical methods to ensure a reliable transition. Sole reliance on single-year data is insufficient, as it does not account for interannual variability or extreme conditions. This paper explores probabilistic modeling as a solution to more accurately assess renewable energy availability. A 22-year dataset is used to generate synthetic data for solar irradiance, wind speed, and temperature, modeled using statistical probability distributions. Monte Carlo simulations, run 93 times, achieve 95% confidence and confidence levels, providing reliable assessments of renewable energy potential. The analysis finds that during Dunkelflaute periods, in high-solar and high-wind areas, DF events average 20 h in the worst case, while low-resource regions may experience DF periods lasting up to 48 h. Optimal energy mixes for these regions should include 15–20% storage and interconnections to neighboring areas. Therefore, stochastic consideration and geographic differentiation are essential analyses to address these differences and ensure a reliable and resilient renewable energy system.