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| SEPTEMBER 2021 | UTILITY WEEK
Analysis Analysis
LV monitoring:
time for a rethink
Historically, the business case for granular monitoring of low
voltage power networks has been hard to stack up. But as the
transition to net zero gains pace and becomes dependent on just
such a capability, it may be time for a rethink. Utility Week explores
the drivers in a new report.
T
he resilience of low voltage (LV) networks is
becoming increasingly critical to the operation of
the entire power distribution network as more dis-
tributed energy resources are connected to the grid and
demand-side participation in the energy system begins
to grow.
This implies a growing need for pervasive and granu-
lar LV monitoring to support close to real-time visibility
of asset health and performance. However, investment
in monitoring of LV networks has not traditionally been
viewed as a priority for power distribution networks,
offering little in the way of tangible consumer benefits
and therefore lacking a clear business case.
This historical underinvestment in LV monitoring
has created a situation in which many DNOs are forced
to infer views about key factors like LV load growth
using data from other parts of their network, rather than
using direct intelligence. It has also placed them in a
position of reactive LV fault management, with compa-
nies commonly waiting for a fuse to blow once or twice
before installing reclosing equipment or homing in on
fault locations.
This approach cannot continue into a net zero future.
Not only will the energy transition increase pressures on
the LV network and the dependency of consumers on
its resilience, but it will also make management of the
LV network significantly more complex. This is because
on a more integrated network it is harder to disentan-
gle load, fault and asset degradation issues from one
another, and to understand the links between the three
