Abstract
The worldwide evolution towards cleaner and more sustainable energy infrastructures has fostered intense research on Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems (HRES) that combine two or more energy sources that are complementary to each other to tackle the limitations of individual renewables. This paper reviews the optimization, control, and energy management strategies used for the HRES and provides a critical short review of the same. This paper covers system classification, component modeling, classical and metaheuristic optimization techniques, AI-based energy management, and techno-economic assessment. The review also highlights key current challenges and offers directions for future research, including AI-based smart systems, hydrogen integration, digital twins, and blockchain-based energy trading.