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SMART GRIDS Global study on smart grids International energy think tank Vaasa ETT has produced the Smart Grid 2013 Global Impact Report that analysed 200 projects, the top 30 of these in detail. T he report was commissioned by Ventyx, part of the ABB group. Julien Groues, Ventyx president for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said at a road show in Johannesburg during November 2013 to launch the report that if Alexander Graham Bell were to return to life he would not recognise an iPhone. In contrast, Thomas Edison, if he returned, would probably be ready within a few weeks to resume an active role in the electricity sector. Groues believes that the electricity utility sector, which has remained largely unchanged for most of the past 100 years, is at a tipping point and will change dramatically over the next 20 years. He says that for the existing electricity utility industry to avoid becoming obsolete the focus has to be on integration, intelligence and innovation. Previously it was difficult for consumers to produce their own electricity. Anyone could install their own generator, but it would not be cost effective. This situation is evolving. The Wall Street Journal says major multinational groups such as Walmart and Google are heading towards self-generation and it is understood that Google will be self-sufficient in terms of energy by the end of 2013. The trend is towards an increasing number of micro grids. It has led to rather extreme predictions that utility grids and power companies are becoming increasingly irrelevant. The analogy is used of the impact mobile phones and other devices have had on landline based telecommunication companies. Electricity is different to telecommunications though and as much as people might like to believe otherwise utilities and their grids will have to be the glue that connects and supports all the distributed systems. Groues says that while the envisaged smart grid is the end goal, it is a journey. “No utility around the world has a totally smart or dumb grid.” In this context the smart grid global impact report is an attempt to get a view of best practice in smart grid projects. Its goal is to benchmark the payback from smarter energy delivery globally. Out of the 200 projects covered, three were in Africa. None of the 30 leading projects that were analysed in greater detail were in Africa, though no particular part of the world dominated. The top six projects came from the USA, Japan, Brazil and Australia. From first onward these are: the OG&E Positive Energy Smart Grid Project (USA); Townsville Queensland Solar City (Australia); Smart Grid Smart City (Australia); a leading utility (USA); Yokohama Smart City Project (Japan), Buzios Smart City Project (Brazil). Dr Philip Lewis, founder and CEO of Vaasa ETT and an author of the report, notes the absence of European projects from the very top of the list. One of the insights provided by the study is the effects of a philosophical difference between 52 Dr Philip Lewis, founder and CEO of Vaasa ETT and author of the Smart Grid 2013 Global Impact Report. The goal is to expand and repeat this report on a regular basis and cover the world’s smart grid projects. Europe and elsewhere, where the former looks at smart grid projects in terms of what it wants these to achieve (environmental goals and customer support) and only then focuses on the business case. In other parts of the world the focus is more on the cost benefits. In South Africa the focus in terms of smart grids is on revenue management and economics. Smart grids are seen as costing a lot and they do. At this stage the smart grid approach in South Africa is on building roadmaps to ensure the revenue comes through and pays for the different investments being considered. Smart grids can be defined in various ways, one of which is based on what they incorporate, and this is multifaceted. They incorporate control automation and protection measures such as fault location, isolation and service restoration. Smart grids also feature dynamic line rating which allows the increase of the available transfer capacity of transmission circuits. Other facets include advanced relays, advanced voltage management such as Volt/VAR optimisation that enables users to improve the reliability and efficiency of distribution systems, power factor correction, fuse savers, advanced SCADA and line loading analysis. Smart grids also provide demand response management and energy efficiency, through measures such as dynamic critical peak rebates and advanced time-of-use pricing. They enable home energy management systems and consumption ESI AFRICA ISSUE 4 2013