Distribution System Operators (DSOs) and Aggregators benefit from novel energy forecasting (EF) approaches. Improved forecasting accuracy may make it easier to deal with energy imbalances between generation and consumption. It also helps operations such as Demand Response Management (DRM) in Smart Grid (SG) architectures. For utilities, companies, and consumers to manage energy resources effectively and make educated decisions about energy generation and consumption, EF is essential. For many applications, such as Energy Load Forecasting (ELF), Energy Generation Forecasting (EGF), and grid stability, accurate EF is crucial. The state of the art in EF is examined in this literature review, emphasising cutting-edge forecasting techniques and technologies and their significance for the energy industry. It gives an overview of statistical, Machine Learning (ML)-based, and Deep Learning (DL)-based methods and their ensembles that form the basis of EF. Various time-series forecasting techniques are explored, including sequence-to-sequence, recursive, and direct forecasting. Furthermore, evaluation criteria are reported, namely, relative and absolute metrics such as Mean Absolute Error (MAE), Root Mean Square Error (RMSE), Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE), Coefficient of Determination ($R^2$), and Coefficient of Variation of the Root Mean Square Error (CVRMSE), as well as the Execution Time (ET), which are used to gauge prediction accuracy. Finally, an overall step-by-step standard methodology often utilised in EF problems is presented.

The continuous growth of urban populations has led to the persistent problem of traffic congestion, which imposes adverse effects on quality of life, such as commute times, road safety, and the local air quality. Advancements in Internet of Things (IoT) sensor technology have contributed to a plethora of new data streams regarding traffic conditions. Therefore, the recognition and prediction of traffic congestion patterns utilizing such data have become crucial. To that end, the integration of Machine Learning (ML) algorithms can further enhance Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), contributing to the smart management of transportation systems and effectively tackling traffic congestion in cities. This study seeks to assess a wide range of models as potential solutions for an ML-based multi-step forecasting approach intended to improve traffic congestion prediction, particularly in areas with limited historical data. Various interpretable predictive algorithms, suitable for handling the complexity and spatiotemporal characteristics of urban traffic flow, were tested and eventually shortlisted based on their predictive performance. The forecasting approach selects the optimal model in each step to maximize the accuracy. The findings demonstrate that, in a 24 h step prediction, variating Ensemble Tree-Based (ETB) regressors like the Light Gradient Boosting Machine (LGBM) exhibit superior performances compared to traditional Deep Learning (DL) methods. Our work provides a valuable contribution to short-term traffic congestion predictions and can enable more efficient scheduling of daily urban transportation.

Driven by the urgency of transitioning to a decarbonised energy sector, the confluence of Renewable Energy Sources (RES), Smart Grids (SG), and the widespread adoption of Electric Vehicles (EVs) has made power system planning and operation a focal point of global sustainability efforts. The rapid adoption of EVs has led to challenges related to charging infrastructure, grid demand, and scheduling management while also offering opportunities as a distributed energy storage solution, aiding peak load reduction and renewable energy integration. Enhanced accuracy in EV charging predictions could alleviate energy imbalances resulting from production and consumption disparities. Additionally, it supports SG architectural functions like demand response (DR) management. Compared to the initial baseline timeseries EV charging forecasting models, which performed poorly, the proposed strategy consists of a step-by-step forecasting methodology using data from predictions of road traffic, weather/seasonality, user charging information, and EV charging load. For each target, various novel implementations and models were conducted, including zero inflated (ZI) and a novel logarithmic ZI (LogZI) regression method. Results comparison indicated an increasing accuracy of EV charging demand forecasts from 78.1 to 88.7% regarding $$R^2$$ R 2 . It also highlighted a decreasing error from 1.75 to 1.05 kWh regarding MAE and from 2.48 to 1.77 kWh regarding RMSE (CVRMSE and NRMSE were also provided). This research contributes a novel one step ahead EV charging demand forecasting framework integrating traffic and user charging predictions with the proposed LogZI regression approach. The proposed, updated version of the ZI approach, methodology performs significantly better compared to the baseline models, aiming to enhance grid stability and optimize charging infrastructure.

The transition to a decarbonized energy sector, driven by the integration of Renewable Energy Sources (RESs), smart building technology, and the rise of Electric Vehicles (EVs), has highlighted the need for optimized energy system planning. Increasing EV adoption creates additional challenges for charging infrastructure and grid demand, while proactive and informed decisions by residential EV users can help mitigate such challenges. Our work develops a smart residential charging framework that assists residents in making informed decisions about optimal EV charging. The framework integrates a machine-learning-based forecasting engine that consists of two components: a stacking and voting meta-ensemble regressor for predicting EV charging load and a bidirectional LSTM for forecasting national net energy exchange using real-world data from local road traffic, residential charging sessions, and grid net energy exchange flow. The combined forecasting outputs are passed through a data-driven weighting mechanism to generate probabilistic recommendations that identify optimal charging periods, aiming to alleviate grid stress and ensure efficient operation of local charging infrastructure. The framework’s modular design ensures adaptability to local charging infrastructure within or nearby building complexes, making it a versatile tool for enhancing energy efficiency in residential settings.

This paper explores the energy-intensive cement industry, focusing on a plant in Greece and its mill and kiln unit. The data utilized include manipulated, non-manipulated, and uncontrolled variables. The non-manipulated variables are computed based on the machine learning (ML) models and selected by the minimum value of the normalized root mean square error (NRMSE) across nine (9) methods. In case the distribution of the data displayed in the user interface changes, the user should trigger the retrain of the AI models to ensure their accuracy and robustness. To form the objective function, the expert user should define the desired weight for each manipulated or non-manipulated variable through the user interface (UI), along with its corresponding constraints or target value. The user selects the variables involved in the objective function based on the optimization strategy, and the evaluation is based on the comparison of the optimized and the active value of the objective function. The differential evolution (DE) method optimizes the objective function that is formed by the linear combination of the selected variables. The results indicate that using DE improves the operation of both the cement mill and kiln, yielding a lower objective function value compared to the current values.