Event Review | IEEE PES Distinguished Lecture: Grid Modernisation and Power Distribution Systems by Prof Julio Romero Agüero

On 26 May 2023, Prof. Julio Romero Agüero, Vice President, Strategy & Business Innovation at Quanta Technology and Vice President of IEEE Power and Energy Society (PES) Chapters & Membership, delivered a face-to-face DLP talk entitled ‘Grid Modernisation and Power Distribution Systems’ at Imperial College London (ICL) which was also streamed via Zoom. This hybrid event was organised by IEEE PES UK and Ireland Chapter & Switzerland Chapter, and hosted by the IEEE PES Student Branch Chapter (SBC) at ICL. This event attracted more than 40 in-person attendees and over 55 online attendees including academic staff and industry experts.

The event started with welcoming words from Prof. Bikash Pal on behalf of ICL, followed by a brief introduction of the local SBC given by Michael Nestor, the SBC Vice-Chair.

PES UK and Ireland Chapter Chair, Eduardo Audiche, then spoke about IEEE, PES and the advantages of being part of the Power and Energy Society.

Immediately afterwards, Mr. Audiche introduced Prof. Romero and handed over the floor. Prof. Romero’s presentation provided an overview of grid modernisation activities and smart distribution systems.

The following subjects were discussed: grid modernisation objectives, trends, modern equipment, technologies, leading industry practices, solutions and methodologies used by the electric power industry to modernise distribution grids and facilitate the adoption of Distributed Energy Resources (DER) and electric transportation.

Prof. Romero was able to bring together all those aspects in a cohesive and holistic description to help understand this rapidly evolving and increasingly complex area.  He explained the need for grid modernisation in primary and secondary systems, as well as bulk power systems.

Prof. Romero also talked about grid modernisation programs, specifically about Fault Location, Isolation and Service Restoration (FLISR), which is a distribution automation application that consists of the coordinated operation of reclosers, switches, and sensors to automatically locate and isolate faults and restore service. Prof. Romero explained that FLISR can be implemented via centralised (Advanced Distribution Management Systems ADMS), hybrid (substation) and distributed (peer-to-peer) control architect Substation.

As general comments, Prof. Romero mentioned that engineering has been changing the world for millennia and the new rapidly emerging technologies are an opportunity for positive transformation that leaves no one behind. However, the world is still experiencing, on average, a shortage of engineers in all domains.

Prof. Romero highlighted that engineering is essential for economic advancement and for the implementation of new technologies and the application of science including for basic needs of food, health, housing, roads and transport, water, energy and management of the planet’s resources. Engineering is a vital profession in addressing basic human needs, in alleviating poverty, in promoting secure and sustainable development, in responding to emergency situations, in reconstructing infrastructure, in bridging the knowledge divide and in promoting intercultural cooperation.

Prof Romero also mentioned that IEEE and PES can help accelerate career growth, ensure access to continuous education and prepare members to lead and address existing and future industry challenges driven by the energy transition. He said that the future of PES and our industry relies on strong leadership, commitment, volunteering and innovative thinking from our leaders, volunteers and members!

As a final remark, Prof. Romero asserted that grid modernisation allows utilities to prepare the grid for the changes driven by the adoption of renewable energy and electrification and the impacts caused by more frequent and severe weather events.  He also mentioned that grid modernisation programs include deployment of advanced technologies and foundational infrastructure (e.g., hardening and aging infrastructure replacement) and implementation of enhanced processes. Grid modernisation involves all components of power systems, including transmission, distribution and substations.

Prof. Romero explained that a key first step in transforming the grid for the energy transition is developing a grid modernisation roadmap, which:

• Enhances and strengthens grid planning, operations, and engineering activities.
• Identifies and prioritizes key infrastructure investments in support of the utility goals.
• Sets the foundation for transforming and preparing the utility for the future, according to industry leading practices, and outlines key initiatives.

Prof. Romero also commented that telecommunications, IT systems, big data analysis and AI will play a vital role to enable efficient and effective data collection, processing, storage, and analysis needed for real-time operations and high resolution/granularity spatial/temporal planning. He said that T&D modelling, simulation, analysis and planning capabilities should evolve to account and take advantage of these emerging trends and technologies, facilitate planning and operations activities, and ultimately further deliver value to end users.

The IEEE PES UK and Ireland Chapter, the PES Switzerland Chapter and the IEEE PES SBC ICL want to thank Prof. Romero for this fantastic technical and informative DLP talk. Prof. Romero’s ability to break down complex concepts and explain them in a clear and concise manner made the session not only insightful but also accessible for everyone in watching it online.

Many thanks also for the time Prof. Romero took to answer questions and motivate members and the general public to engage with PES activities.

Prof. Romero’s passion and enthusiasm for the subject matter were contagious and left everybody in the room feeling inspired and motivated to continue learning and growing their knowledge on this area.

Click here to download the presentation slides.

Many thanks!

IEEE PES UK and Ireland Chapter
IEEE PES Switzerland Chapter
IEEE PES SBC Imperial College London