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Network June 2018

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NETWORK / 18 / JUNE 2018 INTERNET OF THINGS Modelling the grid for decentralised energy Vonnie Smith, vice president of utilities asset performance at Bentley Systems, examines the trends that have driven the acceleration of grid decentralisation and what technologies - such as Internet of Things (IoT) and digital twins - still need to be applied for smooth integration. due to the uncertainty around cost recovery and replacement choices. As a result, manag- ing ageing assets increases the importance of full documenta- tion of an assets' operational history to understand and sup- port predictive and preventative maintenance. Investment de cit has been a past problem that must be addressed in emerging econo- mies to support societal and economic growth. Rapid devel- opment of infrastructure and green eld projects that incorpo- rate DER and renewable energy sources are essential. Common connectivity is the pathway to adaptation Utility systems must adapt to share information and inter- act. Managing assets is an area where interoperability is crucial and federating informa- tion through a connected data environment (CDE) must be part of the solution. The Internet of Things (IoT) has already become a key part of many industries and increasing DER into the grid drives the need for the digitali- sation of information. "Smart" instrumentation and control devices produce a substantial amount of data, much of which is important to understand- ing asset health. Existing and evolving standards all work to provide a standards-based ar- chitecture to facilitate exchange of information between utility systems to strengthen and im- prove the bene ts of the CDE. Renewable generation goals are being met ahead of schedule with some reports of 100 per cent renewable generation now considered possible, according to EUCI. Consisting of wind, so- lar, and more, renewable energy resources are being integrated with storage technology to im- prove the availability of power despite wind and sunlight varia- bility, further driving the change to a decentralised grid. Utilities network models must change to meet those challenges. Distributed energy sources have diˆ erent operating models than to manage and maintain and reliability and predictability become more challenging. Regulation uncertainty will continue as regulators who share the same technol- ogy issues as utilities struggle with how to represent to their constituencies. It is di‰ cult to answer questions about which approaches to incentivse and how to balance consumer issues with using utilities to recover costs, especially when renewa- ble sources clouds the de nition of customer and supplier. Ageing assets remain a prob- lem. Replacing assets, notably transmission and generation as- sets that are operating past their design life, have been delayed U tilities are facing massive changes that aˆ ect all aspects of their business, from planning through to operations. Once an industry characterised as technology-risk averse, utilities have been shiŒ - ing to more agile approaches with a higher tolerance for risk. Modelling the grid to accommo- date these changes requires new approaches and closer relation- ships with trusted technology partners. It's time to examine what methodologies have driven the acceleration of grid decen- tralisation and what technolo- gies still need to be applied for smooth integration. Certain trends have led to an overworked grid Growth in generation at grid edge, also referred to as distrib- uted energy resources (DER), has inarguably reached critical mass. Although T&D networks with centralised generation sources have traditionally been modelled using geographic information systems (GIS) and other network management capabilities, managing assets over their complete lifecycles is a foundational component of modelling for a decentralised grid. As DER supplements or even replaces coal and nuclear generation, the management of utility assets becomes a larger issue: there are more assets

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