THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The current power supply crisis, though supposedly temporary, has forced KSEB Limited to accelerate the switch to Smart Grids. It has called for detailed project reports for smart grids in Kozhikode, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram. Once the SG becomes functional, the state’s power network will be empowered to keep pace with modern challenges. KSEBL has called for detailed project reports for smart grids in Kozhikode, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram. When the state’s network becomes truly ‘Smart’, the public utility can provide real-time information to the consumer and the consumer, in turn, can remote-control his consumption from whichever part of the world he is.
The best part: the system, like any advanced creation, can self-heal. KSEBL, sources said, is halfway there. In Kozhikode, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram, it has already prepared base-line data for the project area that includes consumer indexing, GIS mapping, metering of distribution transformers and feeders, and automatic data logging for all distribution transformers and feeders. Renovation, modernization and strengthening of 11 kV level Substations have also been carried out. The DPRs have been called to build on the gains. They will assess the progress and then suggest measures for creating the Smart Grid.
The Smart Grid can be defined as a system that employs digital information and control technologies to facilitate the deployment and integration of distributed and renewable resources, smart consumer devices, automated systems, electricity storage and peak-saving technologies. “A Smart Grid, now the global norm, is an electricity network that can intelligently integrate the actions of all users connected to it - generators, consumers and those that do both – in order to efficiently deliver sustainable, economic and secure electricity supplies,” a top KSEB engineer said. The Smart Grid, he said, is capable of sensing system overloads and rerouting power to prevent or minimize a potential outage. “What’s more, it can work autonomously when conditions require resolution faster than humans can respond,” he added.
