  A new adopted evolutionary algorithm is presented in this paper to solve the
non-smooth, non-convex and non-linear multi-area economic dispatch (MAED). MAED
includes some areas which contains its own power generation and loads. By
transmitting the power from the area with lower cost to the area with higher
cost, the total cost function can be minimized greatly. The tie line capacity,
multi-fuel generator and the prohibited operating zones are satisfied in this
study. In addition, a new algorithm based on electro search optimization
algorithm (ESOA) is proposed to solve the MAED optimization problem with
considering all the constraints. In ESOA algorithm all probable moving states
for individuals to get away from or move towards the worst or best solution
needs to be considered. To evaluate the performance of the ESOA algorithm, the
algorithm is applied to both the original economic dispatch with 40 generator
systems and the multi-area economic dispatch with 3 different systems such as:
6 generators in 2 areas; and 40 generators in 4 areas. It can be concluded
that, ESOA algorithm is more accurate and robust in comparison with other
methods.
