Smart power grid.

The ATC - accumulated technical and commercial losses on the electricity generation and distribution systems in India is 35 %, ie. about Rs. 40,000 crores. Isin't this a big loss ? Can we avoid this ? How can Information Technology and Communications help us to manage our electrical grids smarter and more efficiently ?

What is a Smart Grid ?

NEMA ( National Electrical manufacturers Association , US) defines it as the addition of monitoring, analysis, control and communication capabilities to the national electrical delivery system to maximise the throughput of the system while minimising the energy consumption.

Schneider describes a smart grid as a system which has the end-to-end bi-directional flow of energy and communication capabilities from generation to consumption.

Characteristics of a Smart grid :

1. Optimisation of Asset utilisation and operational efficiency.
2. Accomodation of all generation and storage options
3. Provision of power quality appropriate to a digital economy
4. Anticipation of system disturbances with automatic responses
5. Resilience to physical and cyber attacks
6. Active consumer participation and
7. Enabling of new products and services

Smart Grid combines power generation and distribution with information gathering and feedback. ( courtesy Times of India)

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