Dutch DSOs reduce power failures by 25%
Two national distribution operators put continuous cable monitoring across their medium-voltage networks — and outages fell by around a quarter.
Power outages on the network down by around 25% after roll-out
Up to 70% more effective than the failure detectors it replaced
Faults placed to within 1% of circuit length and reported inside five minutes
About Liander and Enexis
Liander and Enexis are two of the distribution system operators that run the Dutch medium-voltage network. The Netherlands has around 110,000 km of underground medium-voltage cable, at 6 to 50 kV, and some of it dates back to the early 1900s.
The challenge
Problems in underground cables are by far the biggest cause of power outages. Delivering a reliable supply on a network of that age and scale means being able to monitor all of it — quickly, and accurately enough to act on its findings.
Our contribution
In early 2016 Liander, Enexis and the substation automation provider Locamation teamed up with DNV to develop a 24-hour cable monitoring system, built on the sensor-based detection that pinpoints faults and weak spots on live circuits. DNV manages and monitors the system and analyses the sensor data, so the operators can resolve problems fast.
The system detects over 95% of failures and roughly 65% of weak spots, locates them to within 1% of circuit length, and reports an issue within five minutes. DNV also analyses the sensor data and monitors the system’s performance and status.
Following successful testing, both operators rolled the monitoring out across their networks.
The benefits
After widespread roll-out, power outages on the network are down by around 25%. Both operators also expect the time and the cost of repairing failures to fall considerably.
The accuracy is what makes the repair faster, and the ability to identify weak spots is what prevents the fault occurring at all — the operators put the system at up to 70% more effective than the failure detectors it replaced.
“As a data-driven solution, it helps our 20th Century infrastructure meet the challenges of the 21st Century digital world. It is an invaluable tool in our efforts to maximise our reliability.”
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