Switch-model

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- Users can now provide data in variable_capacity_factors.tab and
hydro_timeseries.tab for times before projects are built or after they are
retired without raising an error. However, the extra datapoints will be
ignored.
- Various parts of the code have better formatting, documentation and
performance.
- switch_model.hawaii.smooth_dispatch is now compatible with Pyomo 5.6 and
later.
- A new '--exact' option in switch_model.hawaii.rps forces the system to
exactly meet the RPS target and no more. This is useful for studying the cost
of adopting various levels of renewable power, including levels below the
least-cost system design (i.e., cases where low shares of renewable power
cause higher system costs).
- A bug was fixed when calculating the cost of water spillage in
switch_model.generators.extensions.hydro_system.
- Final reservoir level in switch_model.generators.extensions.hydro_system
is now stored in a varaible called ReservoirFinalVol. The ReservoirSurplus
variable has been eliminated.
- Bounds on a number of inputs have been relaxed to allow unusual or edge cases.
In particular, a number of variables can now be zero instead of strictly
positive. This allows zero costs, zero capacity limits, zero-based year
counting, etc.
- The gen_is_baseload parameter is now optional, with a default value of False
(0).
- NEW_TRANS_BLD_YRS has been renamed to TRANS_BLD_YRS.
- setup.py now lists an optional dependency on rpy2<3.9 instead of rpy2, because
later versions of rpy2 require Python 3, which Switch doesn't support yet.
This only affects the iterative demand response module.
- A new GENS_BY_ENERGY_SOURCE set can be used to identify all the generators
that use any energy source, either a fuel or a non-fuel energy source.
GENS_BY_FUEL and GENS_BY_NON_FUEL_ENERGY_SOURCE also still exist.
- We have begun migrating toward using `initialize` instead of `rule` when
initializing Pyomo components, and recommend that users do the same in their
custom modules. This matches the current Pyomo API documentation. `rule` also
works for now, but `initialize` should be more future proof.
- The discrete-build requirement is now enforced on generators with
predetermined build quantities, in addition to optimized generators.
- The optional psycopg2 dependency has been changed to psycopg2-binary.
- The --debug option now uses the ipdb debugger if available; otherwise it falls
back to pdb.

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- General
- Added --assign-current-version argument to `switch upgrade`. This is
useful for updating version number in example directories to match
current version of Switch, even if the data files don't need an upgrade.

- Hawaii regional package
- Fixed bug in hawaii.rps that would crash `switch solve --help`.

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- General
- Switch is now compatible with Pyomo 5.6+ (in addition to earlier
versions).
- A new --no-post-solve option prevents all post-solve actions (e.g., saving
variable results).
- If the user specifies --reload-prior-solution, Switch now behaves as if it
had just solved the model, i.e., after loading the solution, it runs post-
solve code unless --no-post-solve is specified (useful for re-running
reporting code), and it only drops to an interactive Python prompt if the
user also specifies --interact.
- A new --no-save-solution disables automatic solution-saving. This saves
time and disk space for models that won't need to be reloaded later.
- New --quiet and --no-stream-solver arguments cancel --verbose and
--stream-solver.
- A new "--save-expression[s] <name1> <name2> ..." argument can be used to
save values for any Pyomo Expression object to a .tab file after the model
is solved (similar to the automatic saving of variable values). This also
works for Param objects.
- The --include-module(s), --exclude-module(s), --save-expression(s),
--suffix(es) and --scenario(s) flags can now be used repeatedly on the
command line, in options.txt or in scenarios.txt. The include and exclude
options will be applied in the order they are encountered, in options.txt,
then scenarios.txt, then the command line.
- A new --retrieve-cplex-mip-duals flag can be used to support retrieving
duals for a MIP program from the cplex solver (users must also turn on the
"duals") suffix. This flag patches the Pyomo-generated cplex command
script to pass the "change problem fix" command to the solver and then
solve a second time. This fixes integer variables at their final values,
then re-solves to obtain duals. This flag is not needed with the cplexamp
solver.
- A new balancing.demand_response.iterative module has been added. This was
formerly in the Hawaii regional package. This module performs iterative
solutions with any convex demand system, based on a bid-response process.
- New indexed sets have been added to allow efficient selection of groups of
generators that use a particular technology, fuel or non-fuel energy
source: GENS_BY_TECHNOLOGY, GENS_BY_FUEL, GENS_BY_NON_FUEL_ENERGY_SOURCE.
- Generator capacity data is saved to gen_cap.tab instead of gen_cap.txt and
rows are sorted if user specifies --sorted-output.
- Even if a model has solver warnings, results will be reported and
post-solve will be performed if a valid solution is available.
- A more descriptive warning is given when switch_model.reporting finds an
uninitialized variable.
- A warning is given about potential errors parsing arguments in the form
"--flag=value". Python's argument parsing module can make mistakes with
these, so "--flag value" is a safer choice.
- Switch now monkeypatches Pyomo to accelerate reloading prior solutions.
Previously Pyomo 5.1.1 (and maybe others) took longer to load prior
solutions than solving the model.
- At startup, "switch solve-scenarios" will restart jobs that were
previously interrupted after being started by the same worker (same
--job-id argument or SWITCH_JOB_ID environment variable). Note that
workers automatically pull scenarios from the scenario list file until
there are none left to solve, and avoid solving scenarios that have been
pulled by other workers. Each worker should be given a unique job ID, and
this ID should be reused if the worker is terminated and restarted. The
new behavior ensures that jobs are not abandoned if a worker is restarted.

- Upgrade scripts
- The upgrade scripts now report changes in module behavior or renamed
modules while upgrading an inputs directory. This only reports changes to
modules used in the current model.
- The hawaii.reserves module is automatically replaced by
balancing.operating_reserves.areas and
balancing.operating_reserves.spinning_reserves in the module list.
- The hawaii.demand_response module is replaced by
balancing.demand_response.iterative and hawaii.r_demand_system is replaced
by balancing.demand_response.iterative.r_demand_system in the module list.
- "switch_mod" will not be changed to "switch_modelel" if a module file is
upgraded from 2.0.0b1 to 2.0.0b2 twice.

- Hawaii regional package
- The hawaii.reserves module has been deprecated and the
hawaii.demand_response module has been moved (see upgrade scripts)
- Switch now places limits on down-reserves from pumped-storage hydro.
- A new --rps-prefer-dist-pv option for hawaii.rps will prevent construction
of new large PV until 90% of distributed PV potential has been developed.
- Limits on load-shifting between hours in hawaii.demand_response_simple
have been formalized.
- The Hawaii storage energy cost calculation has been fixed.
- Total production by energy source is reported by hawaii.save_results,
ad-hoc technologies are added to production_by_technology.tsv, and
hourly dispatch is disaggregated by non-fuel technologies.
- Bugs have been fixed in reserve calculation for EVs and in
hawaii.smooth_dispatch and hawaii.scenario_data.
- hawaii.smooth_dispatch minimizes total inter-hour change instead of square
of levels. The old quadratic smoothing method has been moved to
hawaii.smooth_dispatch.quadratic (slow and possibly buggy).
- The must-run requirement in hawaii.kalaeloa is turned off when RPS or EV
share is above 75% (can be overridden by --run-kalaeloa-even-with-high-rps)
- Support for nominal-dollar fuel price forecasts has been dropped from
hawaii.scenario_data
- A new --no-hydrogen flag can be used to deactivate the hydrogen module.
- The hawaii.ev_advanced module now calculates vehicle fleet emissions.

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First public release of Switch 2. This uses a similar framework to Switch 1,
but with numerous improvements. The most significant are:

- Written in Python instead of AMPL language
- Modular approach, so components can be easily added or removed from model
- Modeling of unit commitment and part load heat rates (optional)
- Generalization of sample timeseries to have arbitrary length instead of single
days
- Standardized reporting, e.g., automatic export of all variable values