Striving for a smarter transmission and distribution system

Earlier, there were frequent power cuts. Today, power supply has improved nationwide, except in a few isolated areas.

- Sanjiv Prasad Head-Power, Utilities & ETP RIL DMD

Speaking of transmission and distribution systems, if we simplify it as a road highway system, we can better understand the scenario. Earlier, there were fewer cars. Perhaps a two-lane highway was good enough, or a four-lane highway was good enough. To a large extent, a six-lane or even an eight-lane highway becomes congested at many places, depending on the volume of traffic that needs to move from one location to another. Therefore, it may be that your four-wheelers represent a smaller amount of power, or heavy vehicles represent a larger amount of power. For this, one needs infrastructure when moving across the road. What we often discuss is how this was decided, how this place was connected to a six-lane or eight-lane road, depending on the traffic considered at that time.

Similarly, in the power sector, our strategies are determined by the plans we have and projections of where we will generate power and where we will consume it. That has now become difficult. Earlier, we thought distributed generation solar rooftops were a good idea. However, that too has become a problem. Many of those rooftops are on bungalows, which are rare now, except in II-tier or III-tier cities.

Infrastructure required