The location and sizing of DSTATCOM is an important factor for optimal operation of radial distribution system. This research employs Artificial Bee Colony to determine the optimal location and sizing of a Distribution STATCOM to minimize total line loss and to improve voltage quality within the permissible range. ABC was tested on the IEEE 33Bus and then also applied to the Govt-House 15 Bus system in Lafia, Nasarawa State, Nigeria. The performance of the ABC was compared with and without DSTATCOM installed. Modelling of the RDS and simulation was done in MATLAB environment and the results for IEEE 33 Bus. The real power loss was reduced by 26.6% from 201.77kw to 148.05 kW while the reactive power loss was reduced by 26.7% from 134.99kvar to 98.93 kvar. The number of Bus voltage violation reduced from 21 to 13. For the Government House feeder, the real power loss was reduced by 63.9% from 171.65kw to 61.87kw. While the reactive power loss was reduced by 64.01% from 195.47 kvar to 70.35 kvar. The number of Bus voltage violation reduced from 12 to 1. The findings from the research shows that that ABC has performed better than other result in literature. The voltage profile, active power loss, computational time was improved with the DSTATCOM. Therefore, ABC made improvement on the standard IEEE 33-bus RDS and the Govt-House 15-Bus RDS with improvements in the voltage profile and reduction in active power loss and reactive power loss.
Keywords: Abuja distribution company, Dstatcom, Enhancement, government feeder Lafia, optimal dynamic stability
