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E nergy utilities are increasingly focused on establishing solutions to support enhanced flexibility in service provision whilst at the same time manag - ing a much more dynamic environment of energy supply and demand. Critical to manag- ing this new regime in a cost efficient and resilient manner is the ability to have visibility and control over an increasingly diverse and disparate range of network assets. For many years, utilities - gas, water and electricity - have used opera - tional communications systems to facilitate active management of assets. However, with the need for enhanced visibility and control across and through the network it is anticipated that there will need to be a profound expansion in the industry's operational communications capability with some opera - Enabling the smart energy networks of the future Dr Peter Couch, chief executive officer of the Joint Radio Company (JRC), highlights the importance of smart telecommunication technologies. tors already exploring possible solutions. The need for such ex- panded communication systems with enhanced functionality will result in increased complexity in terms of network design and co- ordination with new technolo - gies being deployed. Electricity distribution network operators (DNOs) in particular face unprecedented challenges. More and more distributed generation is embed - ded in their networks, much of it intermittent and at the edges of the networks, with significant increases in loading, driven by electrification of transport and heat as the UK seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Some re-enforcement of the networks is bound to be needed, however, making the networks more intelligent can o‡en delay the need, postponing the cost until absolutely necessary and even then, minimising cost and disruption to customers. flows, more resilient and exten - sive communications networks are required. Whilst wired communica- tions networks are already widely deployed, radio is essen- tial to cost effectively comple- ment fixed networks particularly as the number of connections and spread of connections increases. With the intention to roll-out Active Network Management by 2021 1 and the underlying need for enhanced real time monitoring and control to facilitate; l Real and reactive power flows at strategic locations in the network; l The direction of power flows for both real and reactive power; l Voltage magnitude and phase angle; l Switchgear status, opera- tions and failures; l Transformer tap positions; l Protection operations; l Power quality data capabil- ity: and l Asset condition monitoring. This advanced functionality will be enabled by significant en - hancements to the operational telecommunications capability of the DNOs, providing visibility and control over the conflicting trends of demand increase (from electric vehicles and heat) and demand reduction (distributed generation, renewables and energy efficiency) and hence allow DNOs to defer/avoid costly network reinforcements thus minimising cost and disruption to the consumer. To this end, JRC is actively collaborating with both industry and government to ensure that initiatives such as the Black Start Task Group and The Open Networks Project take into account the role of resilient operational communications. Moreover, JRC are exploring with government options for increased spectrum access to enable the enhanced visibility and control capability that are essential to delivering the dynamic energy networks of the future in a robust, secure and The key to the intelligent networks of the future is en - hanced visibility of the network in real time, allied to secure and fast switching to ensure a rapid response to changes in the network to balance supply and demand on a minute by minute basis as DNOs transition to become distribution system operators (DSOs). Enhanced operational communications is key to enabling this. In parallel, customers are ever more dependent on a secure, cost effective and sus - tainable source of electricity to foster a productive business cli- mate and social welfare system. Without utility services, Western societies grind to a halt. Commercial communications networks – public mobile phone systems – are a valuable part of the telecommunication mix, but as the operation and integrity of the electricity system becomes increasingly dependent on data Vehicles plugged into charging points. NETWORK / 33 / SEPTEMBER 2018 TELECOMMUNICATIONS