Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405

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Science of Computer Programming

www.elsevier.com/locate/scico

Original software publication

The MATLAB Toolbox for EnergyPLAN: A tool to extend energy

planning studies
Pedro Cabrera a,∗ , Henrik Lund b , Jakob Zinck Thellufsen b , Peter Sorknæs b
a
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Campus de Tafira s/n, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria,
Canary Islands, Spain
b
Department of Planning, Rendsburggade 14, Aalborg University, Denmark

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: EnergyPLAN is an energy system analysis tool used worldwide for scientific analyses of
Received 16 July 2019 national and regional energy planning strategies and alternatives. This work describes
Received in revised form 9 December 2019 the MATLAB Toolbox for EnergyPLAN (MaT4EnergyPLAN), a set of functions developed
Accepted 21 January 2020
to manage the EnergyPLAN software using MATLAB. The tool allows the user to take
Available online 23 January 2020
advantage of the energy system analysis capabilities of EnergyPLAN in combination
Keywords: with the computational advantages of MATLAB. This allows the user to easily manage
Energy planning EnergyPLAN files and analyse a large number of EnergyPLAN simulations.
Smart energy system © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Renewable energy strategies
EnergyPLAN
MATLAB

Software metadata
Code metadata description
Current software version V1.2
Permanent link to executables of this version https://github.com/ScienceofComputerProgramming/SCICO-D-19-00166
Legal Software License Apache 2.0
Computing platform / Operating System Microsoft Windows / Linux / OS X
Installation requirements & dependencies MATLAB
If available Link to user manual - if formally published include a https://www.energyplan.eu/useful_resources/matlab-toolbox-for-energyplan/
reference to the publication in the reference list
Support email for questions pedro.cabrerasantana@ulpgc.es

Code metadata
Code metadata description
Current code version V1.2
Permanent link to code / repository used of this code version https://github.com/ScienceofComputerProgramming/SCICO-D-19-00166
Legal code license Apache 2.0
Code versioning system used git
Software code language used MATLAB
Compilation requirements, operating environments & dependencies Not applicable
If available, link to developer documentation / manual https://www.energyplan.eu/useful_resources/matlab-toolbox-for-energyplan/
Support email for questions pedro.cabrerasantana@ulpgc.es

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: pedro.cabrerasantana@ulgpc.es (P. Cabrera).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scico.2020.102405
0167-6423/© 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
2 P. Cabrera et al. / Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405

1. Introduction

In the transition towards future energy supply systems, a number of strategic issues arise for national and local gov-
ernments in the world. These involve the impact of the supply systems on energy security and the environment, and their
influence on economic and developmental goals. It is commonly accepted that this inevitable transition should consider
the utilisation of energy sources with less environmental impacts and more local availability [1]. Renewable energy sources
(RES) play an important role in attaining these global aims. According to [2], a set of environmental, socio-economic, and
ethical sustainability aims can be satisfied in the most wide-ranging manner in 100% RES-based system scenarios. However,
in the transition to 100% renewable energy systems, the intermittent nature of RES, the great diversity of subsystems, their
different operation modes, and possible interconnections between energy sectors present challenges for the planners of fu-
ture energy systems. In this context, energy system models are crucial tools to support decision makers and to guarantee
feasible future energy system designs.
Currently, a wide range of computer tools allow users to model and analyse energy systems from different points of view
and with different purposes [3]. Connolly et al. [4] scrutinized 37 energy models available in 2010 and concluded that there
is no ‘ideal’ tool in this matter. Decision makers and researchers should choose the most suitable energy tool depending
on their specific objectives. For example, only five tools are recommended to optimise the energy system to accommodate
the fluctuations of renewable energy – including EnergyPLAN [4]. The EnergyPLAN model [5], with around 349 references
in Scopus and 961 results in Google Scholar, is one of the most popular choices for academic studies within the field
of energy systems analysis. EnergyPLAN is one of the most commonly used tools for the evaluation of high-RES energy
systems [1] and some authors consider it the most suitable tool to identify a feasible RES integration within an energy
system [1,6,7]. This tool uses a deterministic procedure to simulate the electricity, heating/cooling, desalination, transport
and gas sectors in the energy system and to investigate the synergies between sectors by using an hourly approach [8].
The engine of EnergyPLAN is programmed and maintained in Delphi Pascal by the Sustainable Energy Planning Research
Group (SEPRG) at Aalborg University. The manuals, reports, and algorithm descriptions behind the tool can be consulted on
the website www.energyplan.eu. As general inputs, the software uses the energy demand, renewable energy sources, energy
station capacities, costs and a number of optional regulation strategies [8]. Among other outputs, the tool returns the energy
balance and resulting annual, monthly and hourly energy productions, fuel consumptions, electricity import/export and total
annual carbon dioxide emissions.

2. Problems and background

EnergyPLAN has a user-friendly interface, which easily allows the user to run a limited number of subsequent executions
varying a limited number of decision variables for a concrete modelled energy system. Some authors, such as van Beukekom
et al. [9], Bjelić and Rajaković [10] or Mahbub et al. [11] highlighted the manual mode in which EnergyPLAN combines
the optimization of both the operational phase and the planning phase. Most of them underlined the need to combine
EnergyPLAN with other computational tools in order i) to be able to identify a set of future energy scenarios taking into
account multiple criteria and using a multi-objective evolutionary algorithm (MOEA) [11]; ii) to minimize the total cost of
an energy system scenario, as for instance in Serbia [10]; or iii) to include energy efficiency measures in the analyses and
to also use a MOEA approach [12]. However, EnergyPLAN can be called and run externally by a command line specified
in [13]. This possibility allows EnergyPLAN to be combined with whatever other computational framework that can deliver
these desired functions.
In this paper, a set of functions wrapped in a toolbox designed to call and manage EnergyPLAN from MATLAB is pre-
sented. The aim is to take advantage of the high-level technical computing possibilities offered by the MATLAB environment
to increase the potential of the EnergyPLAN model within the field of energy planning.

3. Software framework

The EnergyPLAN developers offer the user the possibility of operating the tool based on a command line call executed
from the computer’s operating system (OS). This call requires two parameters, one specifying an input file path and one
specifying an output file path (-i [inputfile] and -ascii [outputfile]). Hence, EnergyPLAN requires i) the path
of a previously created energy scenario input file, which contains the basic information structure and data of the energy
system under study, and ii) a path where output results obtained after the simulation will be saved. Some valid command
line call examples are presented in [13] assuming that the EnergyPLAN executable file “energyPLAN.exe” is located in
the “C:\kt\EnergyPLAN\run\” path folder. The way to call these examples is presented below [13]:

• Get input file from standard data folder:

• Get input file from subfolder in the standard data folder:

 P. Cabrera et al. / Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405 3

Fig. 1. Diagram of the MATLAB Toolbox for EnergyPLAN.

• Get input file from fully specified path+file:

3.1. Software architecture

The main goal of MaT4EnergyPLAN is not only to do valid calls of EnergyPLAN, but also to allow the users to make
subsequent changes and configurations of an original definition of an energy system (input file) depending on a concrete
analysis idea. This new development allows the user to modify input files before the execution of the EnergyPLAN model
and to access the results from the MATLAB environment. With these capacities, MATLAB can make decisions on whether
more/new executions are needed or not. The continuous and progressive development of MaT4EnergyPLAN since 2017
has simplified several MATLAB functions, achieving a final wrapped package composed of the three fundamental functions
shown in Fig. 1.

1. changeInputEnergyPlan(inputFilePath, newInputFilePath, varargin):

Description: This function changes the EnergyPLAN variables (indicated by varargin with two arguments) of an
EnergyPLAN input file placed in a file path (inputFilePath) and generates a new EnergyPLAN input file placed in
another file path (newInputFilePath).
Inputs: The types and characteristics of the input parameters to this function are the following:
– inputFilePath, a string which specifies the path where the EnergyPLAN input file (scenario file) is located.
– varargin, in MATLAB, a special input type of parameter in a function definition statement that enables the function
to accept any number of input arguments. In this case, varargin contains - in pairs - the names of the variables to
change in an EnergyPLAN scenario (input file) followed by their new values.

Example: In Listing 1, an example of input parameter definitions to call the changeInputEnergyPlan function is
presented:

Listing 1. Example of changeInputEnergyPlan function use.

2. [annualData, monthlyData, hourlyData, CO2, PES, RESshare, TotalAnnualCosts,

VariableCosts]=readOutputEnergyPlan(outputFilePath):
Description: This function reads the annual data results, the monthly data results, and the hourly data results of an
EnergyPLAN execution. It works with a file saved in the file path defined by outputFilePath. annualData,
monthlyData, hourlyData, CO2, PES, RESshare, TotalAnnualCosts and VariableCosts are the
parameters returned by the function readOutputEnergyPlan.
Inputs: The types and characteristics of the input parameter for this function are the following:
4 P. Cabrera et al. / Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405

– outputFilePath, a string which specifies the path where the EnergyPLAN output file is located (file with results
of an EnergyPLAN model execution).
Outputs: The types and characteristics of the output parameters of this function are the following:
– annualData, an array of data composed of the 1x142 double-type annual values and available in the MATLAB
environment and generated in the EnergyPLAN execution.
– monthlyData, an array of data composed of the 12x142 double-type monthly values and available in the MATLAB
environment and generated in the EnergyPLAN execution.
– hourlyData, an array of data generated by the EnergyPLAN execution and composed of the 8784x142 double-type
hourly values which are available in the MATLAB environment. Although most models use 8760 values, EnergyPLAN
is designed to use 8784 hourly data (because it considers all years as leap years).
– CO2, a double-type numeric value with the total CO2 emissions calculated by EnergyPLAN.
– PES, a double-type numeric value with the total fuel consumption of the Energy System (Primary Energy Supply
(PES)) calculated by EnergyPLAN.
– RESshare, a double-type numeric value with the RES share of PES calculated by EnergyPLAN in the analysed energy
system.
– TotalAnnualCosts, a double-type numeric value with the total annual costs calculated by EnergyPLAN.
– VariableCosts, a double-type numeric value with the variable costs calculated by EnergyPLAN.

Example: An example of an input parameter definition and a readOutputEnergyPlan function call is presented in
Listing 2:

Listing 2. Example of readOutputEnergyPlan function use.

3. [annualData, monthlyData, hourlyData, CO2, PES, RESshare, TotalAnnualCosts,

VariableCosts]=energyPlan(energyPlanPath, inputFilePath, outputFolder, varargin)
Description: This function calls the energyPLAN.exe file placed in the energyPlanPath, runs an execution of the
input scenario indicated by the inputFilePath, and saves the results of the execution in the output folder indicated
by the outputFolder. The output file is named the same as the input file but with the string “out_” at the beginning
of the name.
The EnergyPlan function wraps the two functions described above (changeInputEnergyPlan and
readOutputEnergyPlan). Hence, as in the function changeInputEnergyPlan, it is possible to directly change
the EnergyPLAN variables (indicated by varargin with two arguments) of an EnergyPLAN input file placed in a file
path (inputFilePath). However, in this case, MATLAB generates a temporary new EnergyPLAN input file, which is re-
moved when the execution results are obtained. Furthermore, inside this function, the annual, monthly, and hourly data
results of an EnergyPLAN execution are read and saved in a file placed in the file path defined by outputFolder. In
this case, as with the function readOutputEnergyPlan, MATLAB saves the execution results with the same name
as the input file but with the string “out_” at the beginning of the file name.
Inputs: The types and characteristics of the input parameter for this function are the following:
– energyPlanPath, a string which specifies the path where the EnergyPLAN execution file (“energyPLAN.exe”)
is located.
– inputFilePath, a string which specifies the path where the EnergyPLAN input file (scenario file) is located.
– outputFilePath, a string which specifies the path where the EnergyPLAN output file (file with results of an
EnergyPLAN model execution) is located.
– varargin, in MATLAB, a special input type of parameter in a function definition statement that enables the function
to accept any number of input arguments. In this case, varargin contains - in pairs - the names of the variables to
change in an EnergyPLAN scenario (input file) followed by their new values.
Outputs: The types and characteristics of the output parameters of this function are exactly the same as those of the
previous function (readOutputEnergyPlan).

Example: Listing 3 presents an example of input parameters definition to call the changeInputEnergyPlan func-
tion.
 P. Cabrera et al. / Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405 5

Listing 3. Example of energyPlan function use.

3.2. Description of the variables that can be changed in EnergyPLAN

Each EnergyPLAN scenario (energy system model) is defined by an input text file which currently contains 726 variable
definitions. A sample of the complete list of variables, along with a brief description of these, is provided in Table 1.

4. Implementation and empirical results

The primary functionality of the MaT4EnergyPLAN is to manage EnergyPLAN executions by using MATLAB enabling the
interconnection of the two tools and allowing complete access to all options of both tools when performing an energy
planning study. The requirement for using this toolbox is the installation of MATLAB and EnergyPLAN.

4.1. Installation

To use the MaT4EnergyPLAN in MATLAB, the package must be downloaded at https://www.energyplan.eu/ and in-
stalled during a MATLAB session. After downloading and installing the package, the MaT4EnergyPLAN functions, including
changeInputEnergyPlan, readOutputEnergyPlan and energyPlan, will be available in the MATLAB environ-
ment. The following is a step-by-step description of the installation process:

1. Download the toolbox from https://www.energyplan.eu/useful_resources/matlab-toolbox-for-energyplan/. After down-

loading, a “.zip” file will be available with the following four items:
a. README.txt file, with contact information and a suggested way to quickly test the toolbox.
b. Help.html file, with a simple description of how to use the energyPlan function.
c. Example folder, with three simple MATLAB files to use the functions developed in the MATLAB Toolbox for Energy-
PLAN.
d. EnergyPLAN Toolbox.mltbx, is the MaT4EnergyPLAN file, which includes all the functions of the toolbox in one
package.
2. Install the MaT4EnergyPLAN by double-clicking the file “EnergyPLAN Toolbox.mltbx”. If this procedure does not work
directly it is because the OS has not associated mltbx type files to the MATLAB interpreter by default. In this case, it
is necessary to look for the EnergyPLAN Toolbox.mltbx file in the Current Folder Browser available inside the MATLAB
environment. After this process, the MaT4EnergyPLAN will be introduced in the list of Add-ons and a pop-up message
will appear reporting that the installation has been successfully completed.

4.2. Using the toolbox to develop smart renewable energy penetration strategies on islands

This section describes how to use the MaT4EnergyPLAN to implement the method proposed in Cabrera et al. [14]. This
method finds the optimal renewable configuration in an analysed energy system scenario with the goal of minimising the
need for thermal plant electricity production and the critical excess electricity production due to the surplus of renewables
produced when there is insufficient demand. For this optimization, MATLAB establishes in each iteration a new candidate
energy system with renewable generation for the desired optimal renewable configuration. It then launches and executes
the scenario in EnergyPLAN, which carries out an internal optimization of the operation of this candidate energy system
6 P. Cabrera et al. / Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405

Table 1
Sample of the list of variables which define an EnergyPLAN scenario and which can be changed using MATLAB.

# Name Type Example of use Short description

1 ‘EnergyPLAN version’ double 698 EnergyPLAN version
2 ‘EnergyUnit=’ char ‘TWh/year’ Energy unit used in scenario
3 ‘CapacityUnit=’ char ‘MW’ Capacity unit used in scenario
4 ‘MonetaryUnit=’ char ‘DKK’ Monetary unit used in scenario
5 ‘Input_el_demand_Twh=’ double 29.84 Annual electricity demand in Twh
6 ‘Input_El_demand_elec_heating_share=’ double 0 Electric heating to be subtracted from electricity demand
7 ‘Input_El_demand_cooling_share=’ double 0 Electric cooling to be subtracted from electricity demand
8 ‘input_dh_demand_TWh=’ double 21.21 Annual District Heating demand TWh
9 ‘input_RES1_capacity=’ double 3000 RES1 capacity
10 ‘input_RES2_capacity=’ double 3000 RES2 capacity
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
51 ‘Filnavn_cshp=’ char ‘const.txt’ Text-file name with the hourly distribution of industrial CHP
heat delivered
52 ‘Filnavn_pv=’ char ‘hour_PV_eltra2001.txt’ Text-file name with the hourly distribution of PV power
production
53 ‘Filnavn_RES4=’ char ‘Hour_wave_2001.txt’ Text-file name with the hourly distribution of RES4 power
production
54 ‘filnavn_hydro_water=’ char ‘Hour_wind_1.txt’ Text-file name with the hourly distribution of hydro water
power production
55 ‘filnavn_nuclear=’ char ‘Hour_wind_1.txt’ Text-file name with the hourly distribution of nuclear power
production
56 ‘input_transport_TWh=’ double 0.98 Annual electricity demand for transport (dump charge)
57 ‘input_transport_TWh_V2G=’ double 0 Annual electricity demand for transport (V2G)
58 ‘Filnavn_transport=’ char ‘Hour_transport.txt’ Text-file name with the hourly distribution of transport
(dump charge)
59 ‘Filnavn_transport_V2G=’ char ‘Hour_transport.txt’ Text-file name with the hourly distribution of transport
(V2G)
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
718 ‘input_Period_Boilers_dh_gr1=’ double 0 Lifetime of investment for boilers district heating group 1
719 ‘input_FOM_Boilers_dh_gr1=’ double 0 Fixed operational and maintenance costs (in percentage of
investment) for boilers district heating group 1
720 ‘ThermalStorageDays=’ double 14 Thermal storage days
721 ‘input_HH_EB_CapLimit=’ double 1 HH electric boilers capacity limit
722 ‘input_CCS_El_PerUnit=’ double 0.37 CCS electricity per unit
723 ‘input_CCS_Regulation_number=’ double 1 CCS regulation number
724 ‘Input_CCS_Capacity=’ double 0 CCS capacity
725 ‘input_Heatdemand_PerHouse=’ double 15000 Heat demand per house
726 ‘input_Inv_Electric Boilersgr2gr3=’ double 0 Investment costs for electric boilers group 2 and group 3

based on a predetermined strategy (integration of the largest amount of renewables possible, ordering generation by cost,
etc.) and simulates the results obtained. A schematic representation of this method is shown in Fig. 2, and a summary of
the different stages is presented below:

1. The reference energy system is identified. The official data, statistics and reports that are available are analysed in detail.
The demands in different energy sectors, the potential modifications and potentially exploitable energy supply sources
in each of these are documented.
2. The results of the model are validated. The results obtained from EnergyPLAN and data found in official reports are
cross-checked to validate the model.
3. New alternatives are proposed in each sector of the energy system using the concepts proposed by Cabrera et al. [14].
4. A RES configuration is identified for each alternative, looking for a minimum intersection point between fossil fuel
requirements for thermal plant electricity production (imports) and energy surpluses (exports).
5. When step 4 is completed, step 3 is applied to a new energy sector and new alternatives are proposed and evaluated.
6. The results are analysed, and the advantages and disadvantages of the alternatives are compared.

The use of MaT4EnergyPLAN is essential to carry out the procedure defined in step 4. With MATLAB it is possible
to determine the minimum intersection point between imports (fossil fuel energy needs for thermal plants) and exports
(excess electricity production-EEP) in each scenario, when wind and photovoltaic (PV) capacities are increased sequentially.
The procedure is based on the optimal increment of wind and photovoltaic power capacities to satisfy the total electricity
demand of the reference model. Both power capacities are varied N+1 times from their actual values in a chosen year to
 P. Cabrera et al. / Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405 7

Fig. 2. Outline of the proposed approach to increase renewable energy penetration on islands using the Smart Energy Systems concept.

the corresponding values which satisfy the total electricity demand. For each PV power capacity value, each wind power
capacity value is executed in EnergyPLAN from MATLAB, obtaining the N+1 import/export results for each analysed PV
configuration. In reference [14] (Fig. 15), an example is shown of a sequential search for the minimum intersection between
imports and exports for the energy system of the island of Gran Canaria.
The implementation of this procedure in MATLAB is applied to the ‘Denmark2030Alternative.txt’ input file. To analyse
this energy system scenario as an isolated system (as an island), the following steps are required:

i) a definition of three paths (Listing 4):

a. where the EnergyPLAN exe-file is placed.
b. where the original input file is currently placed.
c. where the output folder will be created and the optimal output file will be saved.

Listing 4. Example of path definitions.

ii) a definition of the two variables which will be changed during the exploration. In this case, it uses the onshore wind
capacity and PV capacity installed in the system (Listing 5). The maximum value of each is defined as the value needed
to cover 100% of the electricity demand. Hence, as in subsection 3.1 (Listing 3), two vectors are defined in Listing 5:
a. one vector for wind capacities, with the actual wind power capacity and ten more linear-spaced values.
8 P. Cabrera et al. / Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405

Listing 5. Example of vector definitions.

b. another vector, with the actual PV power capacity installed in the system and ten more linear-spaced PV capacity
values.

Additionally, in this case:

iii) a search is carried out to explore all possible configurations of installed PV (computed by the first for-loop presented in
Listing 6) and wind power capacities (computed by the second for-loop in Listing 6). In both these for-loops:
a. the executions of EnergyPLAN are launched with each possible PV-wind configuration.
b. the different calculations between exports and electricity production (imports in an isolated system) are made.
c. the results (of wind and PV capacities, the values of imports, exports, maximum hourly import, maximum hourly
export and the import/export difference) are saved in the cell type variable ‘r’.

Listing 6. Exploring all possible PV and wind configurations.

iv) a new search to find the minimal intersection between imports and exports (cross points) is carried out in Listing 7.
v) the results are plotted using the typical plot commands in MATLAB.

Listing 7. Search for the minimum values of the difference between imports and exports (cross points).
 P. Cabrera et al. / Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405 9

Fig. 3. MATLAB environment with the example1.m m-file opened and the results of Denmark2030Alternative.txt scenario returned after the execution of
EnergyPLAN from MATLAB.

5. Illustrative examples

The following examples illustrate the options that the MaT4EnergyPLAN adds to the MATLAB code. With the aim of exe-
cuting EnergyPLAN from MATLAB in a quick and understandable way, some example m-files are supplied in the compressed
toolbox file.

5.1. Example 1: A first execution to launch EnergyPLAN with an m-file template supplied with the toolbox

The first example uses the Denmark 2030 Alternative scenario – which can be found in the EnergyPLAN zip-file when
the model is downloaded from www.energyplan.eu. The code in the example1.m file (shown in Fig. 3) defines:

i) three paths:
a. where the EnergyPLAN exe-file is placed.
b. where the original input file is currently placed (Denmark2030Alternative.txt file with the scenario of the Danish
energy system for 2030 defined by 726 variables).
c. where an output folder will be created with the saved output file (new txt-file generated after the EnergyPLAN
execution).
ii) three variables which will be changed.
a. onshore wind capacity.
b. offshore wind capacity.
c. strategy to regulate the critical excess electricity production (CEEP).

This file should be placed in the same path folder as the EnergyPLAN exe-file. After ordering execution of the m-code in
MATLAB (clicking on the Run button), EnergyPLAN will be launched and the Denmark2030Alternative.txt scenario will be
analysed. Once EnergyPLAN finishes the simulation, the annual, monthly, hourly, total CO2 emissions, total fuel consumption
(PES), RES share of PES, total costs and variable costs results will be available in the MATLAB environment. Additionally, an
output file named “out_Denmark2030Alternative.txt” will be placed in a new folder created by MATLAB. This file contains
the results of the analysis performed by EnergyPLAN. The name of the folder is “Outputs” and it is in the same path as
energyPLAN.exe.
It can be seen in Fig. 3 how to interact with the MATLAB environment in order to use the functions of the MAT4Energy-
PLAN Toolbox. The drop-down menu seen on the left-hand side of Fig. 3 shows the MATLAB work folder (‘Current Folder’).
This folder contains the executable EnergyPLAN file (energyPLAN.exe), the example1.m file and the example2.m file, among
others. To access them, MATLAB has been informed of the path where the files are located in the computer (using the
search bar at the top). The code of the example1.m file is shown in the centre of Fig. 3. This is only an example code which
can be modified as required by the user. After executing it (clicking on the Run button), MATLAB generates a list of variables
(shown on the right-hand side). These variables appear in the ‘Workspace’ window and are available for use in any future
execution of MATLAB. A summary of the value of each of the variables can also be seen in the ‘Workspace’ window.
10 P. Cabrera et al. / Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405

Fig. 4. MATLAB environment with the example2.m m-file opened and the results of Denmark2030Alternative.txt scenario returned after the sequential
executions of EnergyPLAN.

5.2. Example 2: A very simple search for the wind and PV capacities with least CO2 emissions

Another simple routine can be found in the file named “example2.m”, also available with the toolbox (Fig. 4). In this
case, similar to the example1.m, the code defines:

1. the two paths where the input file and energyPLAN.exe files are placed. It is also specified where the output folder will
be created to save the results from the EnergyPLAN execution.
2. two variables (“OnshoreWind” and “PV”) as 3x1 vectors, to wrap three different values of the onshore wind capacity
and the PV capacity installed in the energy system. This allows a simple search to be made of a new RES configuration
based on PV and onshore wind technologies.
3. a string-type variable (named “STR”) with the CEEP regulation strategy.

After these definitions, two for-loops launch nine executions (3x3 variations of onshore wind and PV installed capacities,
respectively) of the Denmark2030Alternative.txt scenario. The variable chosen to test the performance of the search is ‘CO2’,
which has the CO2 emissions calculated for each alternative execution.

5.3. Example 3: A simple way to change multiple parameters in multiple EnergyPLAN input files

In energy planning studies, it is common to have to update many scenarios to analyse them with new hourly distri-
butions or changes in some parameters. The file example3.m (available with MaT4EnergyPLAN) shows a code developed to
change multiple parameters in multiple input files (Fig. 5). This example changes the names of wind and PV hourly distribu-
tions in all EnergyPLAN input files beginning with the word ‘Denmark’. There are three original files which are placed in the
‘energyPlan Data/Data’ path folder (‘Denmark100%RES.txt’; ‘Denmark2030Alternative.txt’; and ‘Denmark2030Reference.txt’).

6. Conclusions

In this paper, a new MATLAB Toolbox has been presented to manage the popular software EnergyPLAN. With the set of
functions developed in MATLAB, it is possible to extend energy planning studies to take advantage of all the possibilities
that MATLAB offers.
The toolbox has been designed in a simplified way to allow quick use and easy integration with the MATLAB environ-
ment. Some usage examples have been provided to facilitate an understanding of the potential applications of the toolbox.
Additionally, an explanation is given of how to implement a method previously used in the literature to increase the share
of renewable energy sources on islands using the MaT4EnergyPLAN.
 P. Cabrera et al. / Science of Computer Programming 191 (2020) 102405 11

Fig. 5. Example developed in MATLAB to compute the change of multiple parameters in multiple EnergyPLAN input files using the function read.

Acknowledgements

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under
grant agreement No. 837089. It has also been co-funded with ERDF funds within the INTERREG MAC 2014-2020 program
[DESAL+ Project (MAC/1.1a/094)]. The authors would like to thank Ms. Mette Reiche Sørensen and Ms. Pernille Sylvest
Andersen for their helpful and constructive criticism of the manuscript.

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