T&D India (February 2017) – Transition in Transmission

Some significant developments related to the power transmission sector unfolded in recent
weeks. Power Grid Corporation of India announced that it has sold its entire shareholding
in its wholly-owned subsidiary Power System Operation Corporation Ltd (POSOCO) to the
Union government. POSOCO is the corporate avatar of the National Load Dispatch Centre
(NLDC). With this, the grid management operations have now been detached from PGCIL.
It is now only a matter of time before the Central Transmission Unit is also hived off from
PGCIL. A small unit within PGCIL, the CTU is responsible for planning and development of
new interregional transmission lines. These changes in the corporate profile of PGCIL were
necessitated by the fact that there is increasing participation by private sector in development
of interregional transmission lines, and therefore there needs to be level-playing field between
PGCIL and private operators. After divesting of its responsibility in the planning and grid man-
agement activities, PGCIL will become a pure-play transmission service provider, much akin to
the emerging class of private power transmission companies.
Adani Group also announced that it will be taking over the Western Regional System Strength-
ening Scheme, currently under the ownership of Reliance Infrastructure. Earlier Adani took
over some intrastate lines owned by GMR Group. Adani’s moves are indicative of major con-
solidation in the interregional power transmission infrastructure business.
Power transmission will remain a critical area for India for long years to come. India will need
long-distance high voltage lines to transmit power from far-flung generation centres to con-
sumption centres. Power transmission is an area that will see major influx of new technolo-
gies. India is already gearing up to develop ultra high voltage 1,200kV power transmission
systems. Already 765kV lines, once considered extra high voltage, are now fast replacing
400kV lines to become the new norm for interregional lines. Technologies like live-line mainte-
nance, unmanned substations and use of drones, are making it to the Indian landscape. One
technological-centric multinational company providing drones for grid management, and which
recently entered India, has been interviewed in this edition.
Power transmission offers abundant opportunities for developers and contractors, at both the
intrastate and interregional level. It is time that India’s private sector harnesses this opportunity,
leading to higher private participation even at the National Grid level.
February 20174T&D India
Edit pagE
Transition in transmission
Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.
— Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (German poet)
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contents
February 20176T&D India
8 NEWS
l Sterlite commissions Purulia-Kharagpur line
l EESL plans energy efficiency projects in AP
l Adani to acquire RInfra’s transmission assets
12 Face-to-Face l Power distribution reform needs a change in mindset
S.C. Bhargava, Senior Vice President — Electrical & Automation, Larsen & Toubro Ltd
Also: l Power Generation (15) l Orders & Contracts (16) l Global Snippets (39) l Number Story (40) l Short Takes (42)
31 Achievement l ABB lands its second UHVDC project in India
32 INTERVIEW l The use of drones can increase the uptime of the Indian grid
Tero Heinonen, CEO, Sharper Shape Inc.
34 INTERVIEW l The SCS certification can drive better adoption of ACCC conductors
Dave Bryant, Director – Technology, CTC Global Corporation
40 Photo Feature l Intelect 2017: A journey in pictures
18 special story l India will lead ‘Intelligent Electricity’ : Piyush Goyal
22 LEAD STORY l Budget maintains focus on rural India, infra
26 New launches
l Smart back-up system from Luminous
l Most efficient low-voltage motors
l EPIC® SMART industrial connector
28 INTERVIEW l We are now eyeing the 400kV and 765kV segment
Rattan Lal Labroo, Joint President – Power Group, Angelique International Ltd
Focus: Power Transmission

News
terlite Power has announced
commissioningofthePurulia-
Kharagpur transmission
project. The project consists of two
400kV double circuit lines with a
total length of 273 km, comprising
the Purulia-Ranchi line (112 km)
and the Kharagpur-Chaibasa line
(161 km). Sterlite Power will operate
and maintain the project, traversing
through the states of Jharkhand and
West Bengal, for 35 years.
This has taken Sterlite Power’s
total portfolio to 4,063 km worth
of transmission network and two
substations, spread across 11
states.
Sterlite Power bagged the Purulia-
Kharagpur Transmission Project
through a tariff-based competitive
biddingunderthebuild,own,operate
and maintain (BOOM) model. The
line will contribute to the growing
generation capacity in eastern India
and strengthen the interconnection
between state grids and regional
grids to facilitate the exchange
of additional power. Both the
transmission lines under the project
have been planned under the System
Strengthening Scheme for exchange
of power between West Bengal grid
and interstate transmission system.
The Purulia-Ranchi line connects
Purulia Pumped Storage Power
Project (PSPP) in West Bengal and
the 765/400kV substation of Power
Grid Corporation in Jharkhand.
The Kharagpur-Chaibasa line that
connects substations of Power Grid
and West Bengal utility in Chaibasa
and Kharagpur respectively was
commissioned in mid-2016.
Including projects both operational
and under construction, Sterlite
Power currently has a power
transmission portfolio of 10 projects
with an aggregate length of 6,767
ckm, spread over 15 states. The
portfolio includes seven substations
with an aggregate transformational
capacity of 12,630 MVA. n
Sterlite commissions Purulia-Kharagpur line
S
Schneider to manufacture
contactors locally
Schneider Electric has announced its plans to make
energy-efficient contactors and circuit breakers at its
plant near Hyderabad.
These contactors, currently imported from parent
country France, have recently been launched in the
domestic market. Alongside, Schneider Electric also
rolled out compact circuit breakers used in low-voltage
applications.
The new contactors are equipped with an innovative
electronic coil that uses up to 80 per cent less energy and
generates up to 50 per cent less heat inside cabinets as
compared to electro-mechanical contactors, according
to reports. While, the new range of circuit breaker
provides most reliable low voltage protection with the
patented EverLink technology.
These devices will largely be used in the industrial
and buildings segment along with automation original
equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The products,
designed keeping in my mind requirements of OEMs
and plant managers, will help consumers save energy, a
press report quoting a Schneider Electric official said.
TD India February 20178
aychem RPG Pvt Ltd, a joint venture between USA-
headquartered TE Connectivity and the Rs 21,000-crore RPG
Enterprises India, has announced the acquisition of Chennai-
based Hi-Velm Industries, a division of Digivision Electronics Ltd.
The 60-year old Hi-Velm Industries is a leading brand and trusted
producer of extra high-voltage disconnectors in India. Hi-Velm
Industries owns cutting edge technology, design and credentials
among various utilities in India.
Raychem RPG is currently focused on providing solutions to
improve power reliability and lowering power losses through various
innovative products. “Acquisition of Hi-Velm provides an immense
strategic advantage to us as it adds a new product line in our portfolio
of products and solutions. This acquisition will help extend the
product line in high growth market of EHV disconnectors globally
and we will be able to provide the comprehensive solution to EHV
stations,” said Ramani Kasi, President, Raychem RPG, in a release.
Raychem RPG intends to integrate the above facility at its existing
facility of power infrastructure products at Halol to create cost
synergies as also to capitalize on the product innovation through its
research centre at Halol.
Hi-Velm Industries, it is learnt, has even supplied a 1,200kV
disconnector to the Bina test line of Power Grid Corporation of India,
in August 2012. n
Raychem RPG acquires Hi-Velm
R
Transmission projects commissioned by Sterlite Power*
Project SPV Project Description ckm kV Completion
East-North Interconnection Co Ltd
Scheme for enabling import of NER/
NR surplus by NR
450 400 Nov-14
Bhopal Dhule Transmission Co Ltd** System strengthening for WR 944 765 Jun-15
Jabalpur Transmission Co Ltd System strengthening for WR and NR 992 765 Sep-15
Purulia-Kharagpur Transmission Co Ltd ER system strengthening scheme-VII 272 400 Jan-16
*List may not be exhaustive; as of January 2017; **includes one 400kV line
WR/NR/ER/NER = Western/Northern/Eastern/Northeastern Region

News
nergy Efficiency Services
Ltd has signed multiple
MoUs worth Rs.24,700
crore with the Government of
Andhra Pradesh for energy efficiency
and solar projects in the state. The
execution of projects through this
MoU will help the state reduce
consumption of power and add over
80,000 jobs in the state, a
release from EESL said.
Through this MoU,
EESL will distribute
energy efficient domestic
appliances like LED
bulbs, LED tubelights and 5-star
rated fans under the Unnat Jeevan
by Affordable LEDs and Appliances
for All (UJALA). Andhra Pradesh,
incidentally, was the first state to
execute the UJALA programme
for LED bulbs in 2015. EESL will
continue to execute the programme
in the state for a period of three
years.
EESL will also install of 50,000
solar photovoltaic (PV) grid
connected agriculture pumps
sets in each DISCOM area. It is
acknowledged that irrigation needs
are intermittent, between 200 to
250 days in a year, leaving most
of the days with additional power
available. Solar PV grid connected
pump sets will bridge the gap and
the surplus power may be
fed back to the grid.
Several other projects
will be executed by EESL
for the state government,
including conversion of
500 government-owned buildings
into energy efficient buildings
over three years; installation and
maintenance of energy efficient
LED street lights in 1000 Gram
Panchayats in Andhra Pradesh over
a period of 10 years and replacement
of over 10 lakh inefficient agriculture
pump sets with energy efficient
agricultural pump sets over three
years, the release added. n
n
EESL plans energy efficiency projects in AP
E
Hartek solar EPC
portfolio soars
Hartek Power Pvt Ltd has connected
270-mw solar projects spread across
Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka to
the grid, a company release said. With
this, the power systems EPC portfolio of
Hartek Power has surpassed 500 mw in
solar power projects.
Cashing in on India’s solar overdrive,
Hartek Power has registered a phenomenal
twofold growth in its power systems EPC
business catering to solar plants in a span
of nine months. From just 258 mw, as on
March 31, 2016, the solar power system
EPC projects executed by Hartek Power
have now gone up to 528 mw.
Involving 11 substations of up to 132kV,
these 270-mw projects included a 150-
mw project in Muktsar district of Punjab, a
70-mw project in Mahoba district of Uttar
Pradesh and a 50-mw project in Karnataka.
These turnkey projects were completed in
just five months, an official release said.
dani Transmission Ltd has executed a
sharepurchaseagreementwithReliance
Infrastructure Ltd for 100 per cent
acquisition of RInfra’s Western Region System
Strengthening Scheme (WRSSS) transmission
assets. The WRSSS network is around 3,100 ckm
and the enterprise value of the same is around
Rs.1,000 crore, a release from Adani Group said.
The WRSSS network has two components – one
eachinMaharashtraandGujarat.RInfrahadwon
theWRSSSprojectundertariff-basedcompetitive
bidding. The Maharashtra component of around
2,089 ckm, has been in operation since January
2014. The Gujarat component, is smaller of the
two, and comprises 974 ckm of transmission
lines. This component has been in commercial
operation since December 2015.
After acquiring the WRSSS network, Adani Transmission’s portfolio is set
to increase from 5,450 ckm now to around 10,350 ckm. The final figure also
includes 1,900 ckm of projects that Adani Transmission has won through tariff-
based competitive bidding and currently under construction.
Adani Transmission’s current operational portfolio consists of a network of
5,450 ckm of transmission lines, ranging from 400kV to 765kV, predominantly
covering northern and western India. n
Adani to acquire RInfra’s transmission assets
A
Rajarhat substation on
verge of completion
Power Grid Corporation of India’s
400/220kV substation at Rajarhat in West
Bengal is expected to complete soon, a
government release said. The substation
assumes significance for two reasons. One
is that the substation is critical to supply
more power to Kolkata and surrounding
areas. The second is for the controversy
surrounding land acquisition. While PGCIL
has maintained that land was acquired at
market rates, it is alleged that land owners
were forced to give up their agricultural land
for the project. The substation has been
in the making for nearly three years now.
The Rajarhat substation with 1000MVA
capacity is being connected to Farakka and
Purnea so that it not only receives the power
from thermal generating power stations in
Farakka and Sagardighi but also hydropower
from north eastern hydro stations.
This substation is created with a gas
insulated switchgear (GIS) technology,
which requires about a fourth of the land as
compared to conventional substation.
Components of WRSSS
Maharashtra (Total: 2,089 ckm)
Pune-Aurangabad (400kV, DC)
Solapur-Kolhapur (400kV, DC)
Solapur-Parli (400KV, DC)
Parli-Pune (400kV, DC)
LILO of Solapur-Karad (400kV, DC)
LILO of Lonikand-Kalwa Circuit 1 (400kV)
LILO of Lonikand-Kalwa Circuit 2 (400kV)
Gujarat (Total: 974 ckm)
Limbdi-Vadavi (400kV, DC)
Vadavi-Kansari (400kV, DC)
Rajgarh-Karamsad (400kV, DC)
Grand Total: 3,063 ckm

Face-to-Face
What is your reading of the UDAY
scheme, and the impact that it
could have on power distribution
utilities?
So far government power distribution
utilities don’t have a profit motive!
They have been making losses
year-on-year, which have now got
accumulated. I think what UDAY is
doing is giving them a way forward
so that no matter what has happened
in the past, the discoms now have
a chance to drive themselves
towards profitability. It needs a
major transformation in mindset.
I don’t think it is an issue of just
transferring the regulatory assets of
the discoms to the state government.
Unless there is a major change in
mindset of the utilities, these losses
will get generated once again. It is
therefore very important that the
transformation that UDAY calls for
takes place. The transformation has
to be driven by the Union ministry of
power and the discoms themselves.
If this transformation happens,
utilities will start looking at meters as
a lifetime investment. They (utilities)
will stop seeing them with the
“L1” perspective. The amount that
utilities will need to spend in power
distribution will be much larger than
the investments going in generation
and transmission. Currently, there
is gross imbalance and this needs
to be corrected. I can easily see that
private power distribution utilities
have a “driving element” that one
does not see in government utilities.
If the transformation in mindset
doesnothappen,evenagreatscheme
TD India caught up
with S.C. Bhargava
during the recent
Intelect 2017 event
where Larsen Toubro
displayed its Smart Grid
solutions and expertise.
In an interaction with
Venugopal Pillai,
Bhargava discusses
LT’s competence in
the field of smart grids,
and also sheds light on
the evolution of smart
meters that not only
measure electricity
consumption but also
act as a two-way
communication device
between the utility and
the consumer.
Power distribution reform
needs a change in mindset
— S.C. Bhargava, Senior Vice President — Electrical Automation,
Larsen Toubro Ltd
LT displayed its smart metering solutions at the INTELECT 2017

Face-to-Face
Face-to-Face
like UDAY can unfortunately prove
ineffective.
Tell us about the evolution of LT’s
energy meters
So far, in the last twenty years, we
have made plain vanilla electronic
meters. Second-generation meters
equipped with communication
capability as well as smart meters
with connect/disconnect facility
are now ready. One will now start
seeing rollouts of smart meters.
Already there are some 14 Smart
Grid pilots engineered to a large
extent by Power Grid Corporation
of India. But for two or three, most
of the pilots had meters that came
from outside India. You need to
recognize that Indian meters need
to have a much higher anti-tamper
capability. While this element has
been neglected in the pilots, as we
go forward with large-scale rollouts,
we will need to have meters that are
smart meters but with high anti-
tampering capability, so as to suit
the Indian environment.
So,Ithinkthereisgreatopportunity
as far as second-generation meters
are concerned. Second-generation
meters will not be just standalone
meters; they will have to be system-
driven so that in addition they will
have a communication network, etc.
That is why I think there is ample
opportunity for companies engaged
in automation, metering and even
IT.
How do you rate the success of the
14 pilots?
I think none of them have reached
a level where one can say that it
is successful. Some of them have
helped in resolving what kind of
technology to go in for, and one
can clearly see the RF becoming
a more successful solution in the
Indian environment, as compared
with solutions coming out of the
programmable logic domain.
With so many smart meter
manufacturers in India, how does
LT stand out?
LT not only has over two decades of
experience in manufacturing meters
but it has a thorough understanding
and domain knowledge of smart
meters in the Indian context. We
have sharp skills in all relevant
departments—electrical, IT and
automation. Besides we have strong
execution and implementation
capability. To complete the picture,
we have robust infrastructure
and processes to carry out post-
commissioning services.
How can smart meters empower
consumers in understanding
and monitoring their electricity
consumption?
Earlier, when meters starting
communicating, people had home
display units that were similar to a
smart phone mounted. This gave
data with respect to consumption,
etc. The way things are rolling out,
every customer will finally end up
with an app on his smart phone
that will tell him all about his
consumption.Itwillencouragetime-
of-day (ToD) tariffs to be introduced
for residential consumers. It
will encourage people to look at
how to minimize their electricity
bills and will actually give them
suggestions. Today, mobile phone
service providers recommend plans
to their consumers after studying
their usage pattern. This will also
happen with power utilities who will
give recommendations to electricity
consumers so as to optimize
electricity consumption and reduce
electricity bills. Smart meters
architecture will start becoming a
two-way communication that will
also be educative. I think that is the
direction in which we are headed.
Tell us about LT’s services
that empower utilities in asset
management.
In fact, we did a project in
Maharashtra where all the
distribution transformers across
around 95 towns have been mapped
and are part of the network. At any
point of time, you know why the
distributionnetworkhasgonedown,
which is the malfunctioning asset,
how to reduce the time in getting
it operational. All this information
is available at the control centre.
We are doing a similar project in
Odisha.
Do you think privatization of power
distribution could be an effective
precursor to deployment of smart
grid architecture?
I don’t subscribe to privatization
alone. As I said, you must run
power distribution as a commercial
enterprise, not as a loss-making
one! If you run it as a loss-making
enterprise, nothing will work—
leave alone smart metering. What
is required is a change in mindset.
If you cannot do this, nothing else
will work. The change in mindset,
whether achieved by privatization
or even with existing government
ownership, is what is important.
How do you see the years ahead
for LT in the power sector?
I think we have all the technologies
available enabling us to cater to
power generation, transmission and
distribution. We have our expertise
located in different pockets in
the group but otherwise we have
the same wide strengths that
multinationals do. n
S.C. Bhargava at INTELECT 2017

l Electricity generation from
conventional sources was up
5.2 per cent during the April-
December period of FY17. Thermal
(mainly coal) dominated with a
share of 84.5 per cent.
l Electricity generation from
renewable sources was around 59
billion kwh in the April-November
period of FY17. This was as much
as 28 per cent higher than the 46
billion kwh generated in the same
period of FY16. [November 2016 is
the latest month for which data is
available for renewable energy.]
l Solar energy performed
impressively during the April-
November period of FY17. It
experienced a y-o-y growth of
86.7 per cent. In wind power, the
corresponding growth was 37.7
per cent.
l Wind energy accounted for 63
per cent of the total electricity
generated from renewable
energy sources during the April-
November period of FY17. This
share also improved from 58 per
cent in FY16.
l The share of solar power in
total electricity generation from
renewable sources improved
considerably from 9.8 per cent
in the April-November period of
FY16 to 14.3 per cent in the same
period of FY17.
February 201715TD India
Highlights
Power Generation (Conventional Sources and Renewables)
2015-16 (mln kwh) 2016-17 (mln kwh) % change
Conv. Renew Total Conv. Renew Total Conv. Renew Total
Apr 86,695 4,553 91,248 99,345 5,155 1,04,500 14.6 13.2 14.5
May 95,402 5,143 1,00,545 99,903 6,861 1,06,764 4.7 33.4 6.2
Jun 89,908 6,090 95,998 97,326 8,109 1,05,435 8.3 33.2 9.8
Jul 93,142 8,872 1,02,014 94,606 9,544 1,04,150 1.6 7.6 2.1
Aug 95,122 7,529 1,02,651 95,237 9,636 1,04,873 0.1 28.0 2.2
Sep 95,741 5,485 1,01,226 98,072 8,314 1,06,386 2.4 51.6 5.1
Oct 98,631 4,354 1,02,985 99,710 6,290 1,06,000 1.1 44.5 2.9
Nov 85,906 4,141 90,047 93,569 5,248 98,817 8.9 26.7 9.7
Total 7,40,547 46,167 7,86,714 7,77,768 59,157 8,36,925 5.0 28.1 6.4
Note: Conv. = Conventional Sources; Renew = Renewables
Renewable Energy Generation by Source: Apr-Nov
mln kwh
% chg
% share
2015-16 2016-17 2015-16 2016-17
Wind 26,933 37,082 37.7 58.3 62.7
Solar 4,519 8,436 86.7 9.8 14.3
Biomass 2,330 2,747 17.9 5.0 4.6
Bagasse 5,699 4,062 -28.7 12.3 6.9
Small Hydro 6,507 6,606 1.5 14.1 11.2
Others 178 235 31.9 0.4 0.4
Total 46,166 59,169 28.2 100.0 100.0
Power Generation from Conventional Sources: Apr-Dec
Source
mln kwh
% chg
% share
2015-16 2016-17 2015-16 2016-17
Thermal 6,95,174 7,38,078 6.2 83.7 84.5
Hydro 1,02,145 1,01,194 -0.9 12.3 11.6
Nuclear 27,770 28,233 1.7 3.3 3.2
Bhutan Import 5,081 5,456 7.4 0.6 0.6
All India 8,30,170 8,72,961 5.2 100.0 100.0
power generation
(Source for statistics:
Central Electricity Authority)

KEC International Ltd has reported
the winning of new orders worth
Rs.1,866 crore across its various
business verticals – power TD,
railwaysandcables.TheTDbusiness
received orders worth Rs.1,333
crore that included two domestic
mandates valued at Rs.115 crore,
and several others from countries like
Afghanistan, Zambia, Mozambique
and Jordan. The railways business
received orders worth Rs.390 crore
for overhead electrification works,
civil engineering works, signaling
and telecommunication works etc,
in Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh)
and Guwahati (Assam). The cable
business secured supply orders of
Rs. 143 crore, a release from KEC
International said.
Kalpataru Power Transmission Ltd
said in a stock exchange filing that
it has received orders worth Rs.823
crore that included a transmission
line project contract valued at Rs.737
crore in West Africa, and a Rs.86-
crore mandate to build a 220kV
GIS substation for Haryana Vidyut
Prasaran Nigam Ltd. Prior to this
announcement, KPTL had also
informed stock exchanges of Rs.440-
crore worth of orders for various
transmission lines and substations in
Africa and CIS regions.
Crompton Greaves (CG) has won
an order worth around Rs.720 crore
from PT PLN, the state-owned
electricity company of Indonesia,
to manufacture and install power
transformers ranging from 30 MVA,
70/20kVto500MVA,500/150kV.CG’s
power transformers will be installed
across PT PLN’s transmission
network, spread over multiple
substations and power plants in Java,
Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and
the Papua islands of the Indonesian
archipelago, a release from CG said.
The contract was secured through a
highly competitive open book bid.
The scope of the project includes
site survey, design, manufacture,
transportation and installation of the
transformers. The order falls under a
project funded by PT PLN to enhance
the performance of the Indonesian
transmission grid, which is critical to
PLN’s 35 GW Fast Track Programme,
the release added.
ILFS Engineering Construction
Company Ltd (ILFS Engineering
Services) has received letter of intent
for two rural electrification works
under Deen Dayal Upadhyay Gram
Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY), and one
underIntegratedPowerDevelopment
Works (IPDS) of West Bengal State
Electricity Distribution Company
Ltd, Kolkata worth Rs.515.47 crore.
DDUGJY–RE contracts are being
funded by Rural Electrification
Corporation, and IPDS contracts are
being funded by Power Financial
Corporation.ThevalueoftheDDUGY
contract, consisting of two packages,
is Rs.356 crore while the IPDS
contact is valued at Rs.159 crore. The
completion period of all the contracts
is 24 months, ILFS said in a stock
exchange notification.
Technofab Engineering has won two
orders aggregating Rs.220 crore from
Power Grid Corporation of India, to be
executedinTripura.Bothordersrelate
to industrial and rural electrification
along with works related to 33/11kV
substations and associated lines.
The two orders are scheduled for
completion in 33 months, Technofab
said in a stock exchange filing.
Suzlon Group, a global renewable
energy solutions provider, has
announced the repeat order win of
50.40 mw from a leading undisclosed
power utility. The project consists of
24 units of S97 120m hybrid tower
with a rated capacity of 2.1 mw.
Located in Kutch, Gujarat, the project
will be completed by March 2017.
Suzlon will execute the entire project
on a turnkey basis and will also
provide operation and maintenance
services for an initial period of 14
years through an integrated service
package.Theprojecthasthepotential
to provide power to over 27,000
households and reduce 0.10 million
tonnes of CO2
emissions per annum,
a release from Suzlon said.
Bharat Heavy Electricals has secured
order for the installation of solar
photovoltaic rooftop systems totaling
3.6 mw from Surat Municipal
Corporation. The plants will be
spread over 10 locations. According
to reports, this is the single largest
order for a rooftop PV system won
by BHEL. The PSU engineering firm
currently has annual manufacturing
capacity of 105 mw for solar cells and
226 mw for solar modules. n
Orders Contracts
Improved order inflow for GE
GE TD India, formerly Alstom TD India, has reported an order inflow of Rs.1,118 crore during
the quarter ending December 31, 2016. This was 37 per cent higher than the comparable quarter
of 2015. Major orders received during the given period (October 1, 2016 to December 31, 2016)
included a Rs.150.50 crore order from PGCIL for a 765/400kV substation at Chilakaluripeta in
Andhra Pradesh, and another 400/220/132kV substation, valued at Rs.1,295 crore, for the same
client at Latehar in Jharkhand. The outstanding order book of GE TD India as of December 31,
2016, stood at Rs.8,153.8 crore.

ndustry leaders needs to made
India future ready when it
comes to not just conventional
electricity but also intelligent
electricity. This was the most
important point expressed by Piyush
Goyal, Union power minister, in his
keynote address at Intelect 2017, a
three-day conference cum exhibition
organized by industry body IEEMA
during January 23-25, 2017, at
Greater Noida.
Goyal impressed upon the fact that
intelligent electricity encompasses
all aspects of the power value chain.
However, intelligent electricity,
would have to do more with the
transmission and distribution side.
“The focus is shifting from generation
of electricity to transmission and
distribution (TD) and to last-mile
connectivity,” the minister observed.
He also made a pertinent point
about subtle aspects of the electricity
value chain, which are now gaining
prominence. “Energy efficiency and
energy conservation are finding the
largest traction in every part of the
world,” Goyal stressed adding that
India is the largest market for these
two crucial aspects. When it comes to
energy efficiency and conservation,
any amount of investment made has
the fastest payback, he asserted.
Shortages and Surplus
Goyal brought to light a paradigm
shift in the power sector, and how
this shift has changed the entire
perspective of policy makers and
planners. “For years together, we
have planned this sector in terms of
shortages. For the first time, we have
the ability to plan this sector in terms
ofsurplus,”Goyalremarkedattracting
immediate acknowledgement from
the audience.
“For years together, we have
planned this sector (power) in terms
of shortages. For the first time, we
have the ability to plan the sector
in terms of surplus. When you
plan with surplus, it gives you the
maneuverability to plan intelligently.
With shortages, one is always
struggling,” was how Goyal put this
point across.
Statistics available with Central
Electricity Authority indicate that
India today has 310 GW of installed
power capacity but only 50 per cent
of this is used. This means that not
the entire capacity is usable due to
low power factor of power generation
plants. Generation plants based
on renewable sources like solar
and wind have an inherently low
plant load factor, which can also be
termed as capacity utilization. On
the supply side, electricity generated
from one place cannot reach a
potential destination due to grid
inadequacies.
R.K. Verma, Chairman, Central
Electricity Authority, in his address
observed that since Independence,
India has achieved much on
the power generation side with
installed power generation capacity
multiplyingmanifoldtocross300GW
today. Corroborating with Goyal’s
view that power generation was no
longer the prime focus area, Verma
said that the emerging challenges
in India’s power sector include
integration of renewable energy into
the power grid, combating climate
change, and improving the per
special story
Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Power, Coal,
New Renewable Energy, and Mines
I
India will lead
‘Intelligent Electricity’
India’s total power generation capacity is currently over 300 GW, most of it being thermal
Intelect 2017

capita electricity consumption in
India. In FY16, India’s (annual) per
capita consumption was estimated to
be around 1,075 kwh, which was the
lowest amongst BRICS nations. For
a frame of reference, the per capita
electricity consumption in China
is well over 4,000 kwh. Developed
nations have comparable metrics
that are in excess of 15,000 kwh.
The CEA chairman also explained
that economic growth of a nation
was in direct proportion to electricity
consumption. In this reckoning,
India has a long journey ahead.
Verma also impressed upon the
audience that intelligent electricity
also implies a higher degree of
“smartness” in power generation
and distribution. For instance,
allocation of fuel to coal-based power
plants should be based on merit
order. When the share of renewable
energy plants increases, there will
be a corresponding decline in the
PLF of existing conventional plants
(mainly coal-fired plants.) In this
scenario, coal should be diverted to
more efficient plants. In other words,
efficiency of the coal-based power
plant will determine how worthy it
would be to receive coal.
On the distribution side, Verma
explained that “smartness” will
involvesignificantamountofdemand
side management. Consumption can
be lowered through energy efficiency
measures. For instance, LED
lighting has, over the recent years,
helped reduce energy consumption
substantially.
Indigenous innovation
While admitting that innovation
and research is a limitless exercise,
generally speaking, Piyush Goyal
said that intelligent electricity would
imply that innovation and research
should be relevant to the Indian
context. “Our Indian electrical
equipment should start coming up
with innovations that are indigenous
innovations. It does not depend on
what is being done worldwide. It is
important that the innovations are
relevant to the Indian context. We
should come up with contextual
solutions that are applicable to
the Indian ecosystem,” was how
Goyal put his point across. In a
separate interaction with TD India
at the sidelines of the Intelect 2017
conference, a participant said that
in the Indian context smart energy
meters, for instance, need to be
tamper-proof. This attribute may
not be necessarily applicable to
developed countries, but in India,
the need for tamper-proof meters is
highly relevant.
The power minister also dwelt on
smart energy meters in the context
of intelligent electricity explaining,
“a smart meter is a game changer
when it comes to planning the
electricity sector in the long run.”
He also explained how economies
of scale are being realized even in
sophisticated equipment like smart
meters. When smart meters came on
the Indian landscape, they cost in
the region of Rs.15,000 to Rs.20,000
per unit. A recent tender of around
10,000 smart meters was finalized
at around Rs.3,000 per meter,
the minister noted. “Imagine the
economies of scale when we look at
the larger picture of India needing
25 crore smart meters,” Goyal said
emphasizing his idea, adding that
Indian smart meters need to meet
local requirements and must adapt
to local conditions. “This is where
indigenous research is necessary. We
need more and more ideas coming
out from our young engineers. There
is much more than young Indian
engineers can provide, apart from
just cloning what is happening in
other parts of the world,” said Goyal
in support of the domestic industry.
Goyal dwelt on several other
aspects of intelligent electricity,
touching upon the need for
intelligent power networks, given
the increasing role of renewable
energy resources. “Energy storage
based on renewable can power our
country, making it more sustainable.
The ability to control from source
to socket will be an integral part of
intelligent networks.” Goyal recalled
the major national grid failure of
July 2012 that spurred a massive
exercise in making the power grid
more robust. The power minister was
confident that shifts in technologies
could make Indian grids resilient
and techno-commercially efficient.
“Affordability of power is critical to
“Make in India” and “Digital India”
and other campaigns,” he observed.
In his concluding remarks, Goyal
expressed his faith in India’s ability
in meeting the requirements of
intelligent electricity: “India will
lead the charge when it comes to
innovation and technology. The
future will not come from other parts
of the world. It will be designed in
India, made in India and executed in
India.” n
special story
Intelect 2017

Last date for booking: February 28, 2017
Advertise in the special edition of
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CONTACT
E; abhishek.mishra@tndindia.com
T: +91 (22) 6221 6617 M: (0) 98-210-06258
March
2017

T
he Union Budget: 2017
presented by Union finance
minister on February 1,
2017, was definitely a progressive
one, maintaining a conscious thrust
on critical areas like rural India and
infrastructure. Though the Union
Budget speech did not quite have
any new proposals for the power
sector, there is plenty in store for
equipment suppliers and services
providers. TD India, in this special
story, takes a closer look at the key
areas for FY18, as gleaned from the
budget speech and other budget
documents.
The total allocation to the power
sector for FY18 has been pegged
at Rs.13,881 crore that would be
32 per cent higher than the revised
estimate of Rs.10,476 crore forFY17.
Out of the total allocation for FY18,
total capital expenditure would be
Rs.3,586 crore, mainly comprising of
Lead story
Budget maintains focus on
rural India, infra
The budget gave a clear indication of the
government’s focus to achieve ‘sustainable
energy for all’, with two of its critical
steps; firstly, by providing a boost to rural
electrification with a 25 per cent increase
in the outlay for key power schemes
like Integrated Power
Development Scheme and
Deen Dayal Upadhyaya
Gram Jyoti Yojna. This
is expected to fast track
the rural electrification
drive of the Government,
which is now planned to
be completed by May 1,
2018. Secondly, by strengthening its focus
on renewable energy forms with the inflow
of another 20 GW in the next fiscal.
This however, will require investments
in grid management and digitisation of the
grid to ensure supply of quality reliable and
safe power. It is important to stress that
along with rural electrification, it is equally
important to provide reliable and quality
power which requires investments towards
modernisation of the country’s transmission
and distribution power networks and use of
digitisation in grid management.”
Anil Chaudhry, MD,
Schneider Electric India
Full marks to FM and his team for taking
steps to address the need for accelerating
growth through raising consumer demand
and increasing investment.
Infrastructure is
the key for economic
growth of the country
and Rs 3.96 lakh crore
allocation which is 10
per cent over FY17
estimates only re-
emphasises the high
importance which the government lays
on this. Investment in Railways, airports,
20GW of solar installations, 100 per cent
electrification of all villages by May 2018
and continued thrust on transmission and
distribution will provide lot to cheer for by
the copper industry as it is likely to help
growth of copper market.
Sanjeev Ranjan, MD,
ICA India
“The Honorable Finance Minister mentioned
during his Budget speech that we are well
on our way to achieving
100 per cent village
electrification by May
2018. It is globally
accepted that access to
energy is fundamental
to economic growth
and human development.
Energy Efficiency Services Limited is proud
to have contributed to immense energy
savings which help avoid additional capacity,
thereby increasing access to electricity.
Duty cuts in LED manufacturing will
encourage further innovation and support
our ongoing efforts to reduce the cost of
cutting-edge technology. This is a stepping
stone towards India becoming a global
leader in energy efficiency programmes.”
Saurabh Kumar, MD,
Energy Efficiency Services Ltd
The union Budget’s declaration of 100 per
cent village electrification by May 2018 will
be beneficial to Power
Distribution segment.
Also, the plan to add
20,000 mw solar
power will boost solar
segment. Besides the
reduction in Income Tax
from 30 per cent to 25
per cent for industries having turnover of
less than Rs.50 crore will be beneficial to
MSME companies manufacturing power
equipment and accessories”
— George Menezes, Chief Operating
Officer, Godrej Electricals Electronics
Su Kam would be standing with Mr Jaitley’s
initiative of full electrification of 18,452
villages which were identified in 2015 and
that will be achieved by 1 March 2018, for
which an extra Rs4,814
crore will be spent in the
next financial year. Also
with the announcement
of setting up of 20 GW
of solar power capacity
and feeding 7,000
Development Scheme and
Deen Dayal Upadhyaya
Gram Jyoti Yojna. This
is expected to fast track
the rural electrification
drive of the Government,
which is now planned to
be completed by May 1,
the key for economic
growth of the country
and Rs 3.96 lakh crore
allocation which is 10
per cent over FY17
estimates only re-
emphasises the high
on our way to achieving
100 per cent village
electrification by May
2018. It is globally
accepted that access to
energy is fundamental
to economic growth
and human development.
Distribution segment.
Also, the plan to add
20,000 mw solar
power will boost solar
segment. Besides the
reduction in Income Tax
from 30 per cent to 25
which an extra Rs4,814
crore will be spent in the
next financial year. Also
with the announcement
of setting up of 20 GW
of solar power capacity
and feeding 7,000

Rs.2,500 crore under the Integrated
Power Development Scheme. The
electrical equipment sector will
generally benefit from the huge
allocation for infrastructure in
FY18, which stands at an all-time
high of Rs.3,96,135 crore.
In the context of equipment
suppliers and services providers
to the power sector, the budget has
focused on three ‘R’s –Rural India,
Railways and Renewables. We take
a closer look.
RuRal IndIa
Across several parameters, the
budgethasmaintainedasharpfocus
on rural India. While improving
farm incomes has been retained
as the ultimate objective, there has
been significant allocation towards
infrastructure development in rural
India. Allocation to the long-term
irrigation fund of NABARD has
been proposed at Rs.20,000 crore
for FY18, taking the corpus to
Rs.40,000 crore. This is expected to
boost the demand for agricultural
pumps, and in keep with current
trends,energy-efficientagricultural
pumps. Overall, allocation to the
rural sector has been increased by
24 per cent in FY18, over that in
FY17. This will spur the demand
for various products and services
catering to rural infrastructure.
Specifically, allocation under
the national rural electrification
scheme, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya
railway stations with solar power, giving a
major impetus to the shift to clean energy.
Solar energy initiatives, with the help
of our government policies and the
depreciating global prices, is now at an
escalating point where it can compete on
its own against other forms of conventional
energy sources,
Sanjeev Saini
Director (Technical), Su-Kam
ThiS budget is expected to lead an inclusive
growth with a clear focus to lift the rural
economy and create the right infrastructure.
It is indeed encouraging that India is now
ranked sixth globally on
the manufacturing front.
The budget promises
a very robust forex
reserve, with resilient
domestic market,
further capitalisation of
PSU banks, and launch
of trade infrastructure for export scheme
(TIES), can truly position the ‘Make in India’
apart from establishing the country as a
global hub for engineering goods.
Tulsi Tanti, CMD,
Suzlon Group
The Union Budget is a fiscally prudent
budget aimed at fiscal consolidation which
should lead to a stable economic growth if
implemented in a planned manner. Some
announcements like a new metro rail policy,
abolition of Foreign Investment Promotion
Board are forward looking which will provide
necessary policy impetus to investor
sentiments. Selective reduction of corporate
tax rate for companies
below Rs 500 million
turnover should be a
game changer as far as
corporate tax inclusion
is considered since this
will encourage higher
compliance at the
lower level of the corporate pyramid where
percentage of tax leakages is usually much
higher. We also welcome the government’s
efforts and commitment to electrification
program which mentions that 100 per cent
village electrification will be achieved by May
1, 2018.”
Rajeev Sharma, Head- Corporate
Services Strategic Planning, Mitsubishi
Electric India Pvt. Ltd
We believe that the government has
focused on creating an inclusive budget
for a transparently governed country. It’s
refreshing to see the government calling out
digital economy as one of the major areas of
focus as this will bring
in a more transparent
a d m i n i s t r a t i o n ,
enhancing finances
for everyone. The
move to incentivize
merchants with rebates
will accelerate the adoption of mobile
and digital payment systems in India thus
increasing the scope of financial services
to the under-banked. Personally believe
that this budget holds a lot of promise
for skilling the youth in the country.
The almost 1/3rd increase in resource
allocation towards Integrated Power
Development Scheme and Deen Dayal
Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojna is also a step
in the positive direction.”
Sunil Khanna, President MD - India,
Vertiv
The Union Budget 2017-18 aims at
comprehending the dream of building a
transparent and sustainable economy by
providing an impetus to rural economy, road
infrastructure, airports and railways, which
is a welcome move. . Increasing spends
on capital expenditure
and infrastructure, and
provisions to generate
more employment
opportunities, are some
ofthefewpivotsthatcan
support India’s rapid
growth. Provisions of a
new policy for metro rail and the proposed
investment in making 500 railway stations
disabled friendly will help provide a boost
to the elevator and escalator industry in the
long term.
– Sebi Joseph, President,
Otis India.
ranked sixth globally on
the manufacturing front.
The budget promises
a very robust forex
reserve, with resilient
domestic market,
further capitalisation of
PSU banks, and launch
tax rate for companies
below Rs 500 million
turnover should be a
game changer as far as
corporate tax inclusion
is considered since this
will encourage higher
compliance at the
in a more transparent
a d m i n i s t r a t i o n ,
enhancing finances
for everyone. The
move to incentivize
merchants with rebates
and infrastructure, and
provisions to generate
more employment
opportunities, are some
ofthefewpivotsthatcan
support India’s rapid
growth. Provisions of a

Lead story
Gram Jyoti Yojan (DDUGJY), has
been stepped by 44 per cent to
Rs.4,814croreinFY18fromRs.3,350
crore in FY17. The government has
also targeted to achieve 100 per
cent electrification by May 1, 2018.
This is in keeping with the Prime
Minister’s announcement made on
the Independence Day of 2015 that
his government will electrify the
remaining 18,452 non-electrified
villages in 1,000 days thence.
It must be carefully noted that 100
per cent village electrification does
not mean that all rural households
will be equipped with an electricity
connection. Current norms suggest
that a village is deemed electrified
if 10 per cent of the households
have an electricity connection.
This is over and above, electricity
connections to government
offices, schools and dispensaries.
Thus, even beyond May 1,
2018, intensification of village
electrification, which is increasing
the number of electric connections,
even in so-called “electrified”
villages, will continue.
When rural electrification took
off in India, then under the Rajiv
Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran
Yojana, even Central PSUs like
Power Grid Corporation of India,
and large private contractors
like KEC International Ltd, were
involved. Over the years, rural
electrification has spawned a
fraternity of small and medium
contractors that have progressed
from being electrical equipment
manufacturers.
Railways
Union Budget 2018 was historic
in view of the fact that for the
very time in history, there was
no separate Railway Budget. All
major proposals, which would
have been made in the Railway
Budget speech, were subsumed
in the Union Budget speech.
The total capital expenditure on
the Railways for FY18 has been
estimated at Rs.1,39,341 crore,
which includes Rs.55,000 crore as
Central assistance. The total capital
expenditure for FY18, is nearly
30 per cent higher than in FY17.
The focus this year has been on
signaling and telecom that has an
outlay of Rs.2,331 crore as against
Rs.954 crore in FY17. The Budget
has also envisaged electrical works
(other than railway electrification)
of Rs.362 crore. Industry sources
suggest that electrification of
railway lines will be a slow process
in the coming years, as many of
the important and revenue-centric
lines have already been electrified.
Undertaking electrification of
sparse-traffic lines might not be
remunerative.
The Indian Railways is instead
proposing to procure dual-mode
locomotives that can run on
electricity (on electrified routes)
and on diesel, in the case of non-
electrified routes. Having dual-
mode locomotives will obviate the
need for changing the locomotive
from an electric one to a diesel
locomotive during the journey.
As the dual-mode locomotive
is largely going to be a “Make
in India” endeavour, it presents
opportunity to Indian suppliers for
transformers and other electrical
components used in the propulsion
system of such locomotives.
Renewables
Contracting companies in the field
of rooftop solar plants are poised to
benefit from the Budget proposal
of installing such plants atop 7,000
railway stations. A beginning has
alreadybeenmadewith300stations.
The Budget has also proposed to
install power generation plants that
would use biodegradable waste
from railways, at New Delhi and
Jaipur railway stations.
In solar energy, the Budget has
proposed to take up the second
phaseoftheSolarParkdevelopment
project, envisaging an additional
20,000 mw of generation capacity.
The Union Budget has also made
an allocation of Rs.75 crore towards
capital expenditure on Green
Energy Corridors. n
www.wired.com

New Launches
Smart back-up system from
Luminous
Luminous Power Technologies has
launched Regalia, a unique power
back-up system that can be wall
mounted and comes loaded with
so many features. A product note
from Luminous said that the system
is the most compact power back-
up system available in India and
uses the latest in-built lithium ion
battery technology – just like mobile
phones. Regalia is maintenance free
and has a battery lifespan of up to 10
years. Regalia has the option to be
charged with regular mains supply
or through solar panels. Its unique
fast charging technology charges
battery completely in 2-3 hours,
the release said, adding that users
can stay connected with the back-
up system using Wi-Fi. Diagnostics
are also possible via smart phones.
It is safe, eliminating the risk of
accidental contact by doing away
with wires, terminals and includes
an in-built safety mechanism to
protect appliances from voltage
surges and short circuits, the product
note added.
Most efficient low-voltage
motors
Siemens Ltd has announced the
launch of its new range of energy
efficient motor SIMOTICS 1LE7.
The new SIMOTICS 1LE7 range of
motors is the newest entrant in the
existing range of motors offered by
Siemens in India. These motors,
to be manufactured in India, offer
efficiency values higher than the
IE3 standards that is currently
the highest efficiency class as
recognized by Indian Standards.
Siemens SIMOTICS 1LE7 motors
are capable of offering an average
monetary savings of up to 8–20 per
cent depending on the frame size.
Apart from generating savings, the
SIMOTICS1LE7rangeofmotorswill
assist customers to reduce lifecycle
costs, and meet environmental
regulations. Siemens Ltd was also
the first company in India to launch
the locally – manufactured IE2
and IE3 efficiency class industrial
motors. Today, one out of two energy
efficient low voltages IE motor sold
in India is from Siemens. (Image
shown here is representative.)
EPIC® SMART industrial
connectors
Lapp India, a wholly-owned
subsidiary of the Germany-based
Lapp Group, has launched EPIC®
SMART, an industrial rectangular
connector. EPIC® SMART
industrial connector is designed
and manufactured in Asia for Asian
customers with the promise of high
performance at a cost-effective
price. These connectors are used
for power and control application in
all industries ranging from machine
tool, automotive and material
handling to industrial automation.
They are suitable for rated current
up to 16A and voltage: 500V tested
as per DIN IEC 60512-5 and with
UL approval. EPIC® SMART is
available in 6, 10, 16 and 24 contacts
with screw type termination for easy
assembly. These connectors can
withstand temperature ranging from
-40°C to +125°C making them very
robust for industrial applications, a
release from Lapp India said.
K40 family from Microchip
The PIC18F “K40” family of
microcontrollers (MCUs) is
now available from Microchip
Technology Inc., a company release
said. The family consists of 10
new devices ranging from 16-128
KB of flash memory with package
options covering 28-64 pins. These
cost optimised 8-bit MCUs are
the first PIC18 product family to
offer Microchip’s popular Core
IndependentPeripherals(CIPs).CIPs
provide developers with the ability
to accomplish tasks in hardware
while freeing up the CPU to do other
tasks or go to sleep. This results in
reduced power consumption, allows
for deterministic response time,
decreased firmware development
and time needed for validation.
The PIC18F “K40” features the
ADC with Computation (ADC2)
— an intelligent Analog to Digital

The Union power ministry had mandated that foreign companies
that wanted to supply mainplant supercritical power equipment
(boilers and turbine generators) to government power projects
should be willing to set up indigenous manufacturing facilities.
This advisory expired in October 2015 but has since been
extended by another three years, which is up to October 2018.
Accordingly, a foreign bidder
should have a registered subsidiary
or a joint venture company for
manufacturing of supercritical
boilers or turbines in India.
The bidder in this case must
maintain an equity participation
of minimum 51 per cent in the subsidiary or minimum 26 per
cent in the JV company during the lock-in period of seven years.
A minimum 75 per cent of the land required for setting up the
manufacturing facility should be in possession with clear title, prior
to submission of bid in the name if the subsidiary/JV company.
[The first advisory to this effect was issued on February 2, 2010
and it expired in October 2012. The advisory was then extended
by three years to October 2015 and is now being extended for a
further period of three years.]
New Launches
Converter which, independent of the
core, can control data acquisition and
signal analysis functions required
in sensor interface applications,
such as capacitive touch sensing.
The addition of CIPs to the PIC18F
“K40” builds upon the legacy of the
successful PIC18F “K20” family.
These new devices are cost effective
and offer up to 128KB of flash, 5V
operation, EEPROM and extensive
peripheral integration, the release
added.
NI launches upgraded
VirtualBench
National Instruments (NI) has
announced the VB-8054 instrument,
a new higher performance model of
VirtualBench. VirtualBench plays
a key role in reducing the cost and
footprint of test and measurement
systems by consolidating five
of the most commonly used
instruments into one device without
compromising the performance of
each instrument. Combined with
a modern software experience and
simple programming interface,
VirtualBench creates new
efficiencies for engineers interacting
with benchtop test equipment or
developing low-cost automated
test systems, a release from NI
said. The VirtualBench application
requires zero installation and
can load automatically through
Windows AutoPlay when connected
through USB. VirtualBench also
includes software capabilities like
digital phosphor density maps for
displaying multiple acquisitions
simultaneously,XYmodeforplotting
channels against one another
and hands-free smart capture for
automatic data capture of repeated
stable waveforms. The VirtualBench
hardware family consists of three
models most easily designated by
oscilloscope analog bandwidth: 100,
350 and 500 MHz. n
Domestic manufacturing clause for
supercritical power equipment
Photo: Toshiba JSW Power Systems
Knowledge Centre

interview
We observe that most of your
power TD projects are overseas.
Tell us about the rationale of this
preference.
Angelique International Ltd was
founded in 1996. Promoters and
the professionals, who joined the
company had vast experience in
international projects. The basic
aim and vision was to establish
a company to deliver quality
international EPC projects over the
years in developing countries. The
main focus has been on all parts of
Africa, SAARC and ASEAN regions.
Developing countries are deficient
in infrastructure and availability of
power is a big problem in Africa. This
was one of the main reasons for us to
go in for TD projects in Africa.
Our first major TD job was in
Sudan, the 220kV 342-km Singa–
Hawatta–Gedaref–Galabat double
circuit transmission line with three
substations consisting of 2x100
MVA transformers each. On the
successful execution of this project,
we were awarded the Mali–Ivory
Coast interconnection project.
It is not just power TD,
Angelique focuses on the entire
value chain including generation,
rural electrification and household
connections. Incidentally, Angelique
is the only Indian company
having undertaken complete EPC
hydropower projects in Africa. We
completed our first hydropower
project along with its associated
transmission line and substations in
Rwanda last year. We also completed
the Salma Dam hydropower project
in Afghanistan that was inaugurated
by Hon’ble Prime Minister of India,
Shri Narendra Modi last year.
It was in 2005 that Angelique
diversified into domestic market.
Which countries or regions do
regard as high-potential ones when
it comes to your overseas power
TD business?
Developing countries in sub Saharan
Africa suffer from deficiency in
Angelique International
is a global EPC
company with
expertise in diverse
areas like power, water
and industry. In the
power transmission
segment, Angelique
International has
proved its competence
by successfully
constructing complex
transmission systems
in diverse global
geographies. We have
Rattan Lal Labroo
discussing at length
Angelique’s power
transmission business.
Getting into the EHV
segment, including
400kV, 500kV and
765kV, both in India
and abroad, is high
on the company’s
agenda, notes Labroo.
An interaction by
Venugopal Pillai.
We are now eyeing the
400kV and 765kV segment
— Rattan Lal Labroo, Joint President – Power Group,
Angelique International Ltd
225/30/15kV Sikasso substation, Mali

interview
power infrastructure. This is a major
region having potential for TD
projects. In addition, South East
Asian and SAARC countries offer a
lot of potential.
What are the typical challenges
that power TD contractors face
during project execution? In
general terms, what difference
do you perceive whilst executing
projects in India and overseas?
There are many challenges in
executing projects overseas. For
instance, on the technical side,
each country and region has its
own practices of construction
of TD systems. It sometimes
becomes difficult to convince the
authorities on the advancement
or improvisation in the system as
they are not ready to deviate from
the techniques that they have been
using for years.
There also exists significant
difference in executing projects
in India and abroad.In overseas
projects, the specifications of the
equipments do not necessarily
cover all technicalities required by
contractor to design the system.
This is mainly due to blending of the
practices prevailing in the country
and the specifications prevailing in
the country of origin of consultant.
Thus it becomes difficult to sort out
the contradictions, considering the
local conditions
Many a times the contractor
has to improvise and frame the
requirements by carrying out system
study, as grid data is not available.
The routing to destination is
to be planned carefully taking
into account the time taken and
cost analysis for transportation to
ultimate destination. One has to be
clear about port clearances, local
laws, taxation, customs formalities
etc. Unloading machinery like
cranes of sufficient capacities are
not available in many places. There
are instances where we had to
transport cranes from neighboring
countries.
Also, replenishing the shortage
of materials is a costly affair and a
difficult task, as the lead time for
sending the materials from India or
elsewhere is long. Even airlifting
has to be done sometimes. Basic
hardware items of standard sizes
are not available in some places
and hence need to be airlifted from
India.
In 90 per cent of cases, skilled
manpower is sent from India adding
to the cost and time, as the visa
formalities and police clearances
elongate the time line.
Even the basic tools and tackles
are to be carried from India. In some
cases, it is difficult to airlift some of
the testing equipment because of its
size.
Language of communication
poses a big problem in many
countries. Most of the West African
nations are Francophone.
Warlike situation or political
disturbance is a big challenge
in some countries like Yemen,
Afghanistan, Burundi, Mali, Tchad
where we are working or have
worked. We had to evacuate our
staff for safety reasons.
Obtaining shutdowns
is particularly difficult for
interconnection jobs where
multiple agencies in different
countries are involved. It is difficult
to arrive at an agreement as the
utilities have different priorities.
What comes to your mind as
the most challenging power
transmission project executed in
India or overseas?
It is difficult to pick up one project.
However, the Mali-Ivory Coast
interconnection project was a
challenging one.
Thescopewasa100-km225kVline
225/16.5kV Djibi substation, Ivory Coast
220kV Gadaref-Gallabat transmission line, Sudan

interview
in Mali and a 137-km 225kV line in
Ivory Coast forming interconnection
between two countries. It also
involved construction of complete
225kV substations at Ferkesedougou
in Ivory Coast and at Sikasso,
Koutiala and Segou in Mali.
It also involved synchronizing
power systems of Ivory Coast and
Mali and making it operational,
and providing and commissioning
a 1,200-km PLCC/OPGW
communication link from Abidjan in
Ivory Coast to Segou in Mali.
The challenges encoutered were
very significant:
The project jurisdiction fell in two
countries Mali and Ivory Coast, but
Mali was the client. The material
shipment was through Abidjan,
Ivory Coast but had to be stored in
Sikasso, Mali, due to rebels’ control
in the area of the project in Ivory
Coast; authorities were not inclined
to keep storage in Ivory Coast.
Managing time and cost was a big
challenge to operate the stores from
Mali, first towards Mali and then
from Mali to Ivory Coast.
The Mali Ivory Coast border was
controlled by rebels—gun-totting
persons in military uniform with
no state authority—but full illegal
authority. They would harass at will
for passing the border. Our staff
was directed not to travel in evening
and return to base before dark as
there was threat. In the 137-km road
length in Ivory Coast territory, there
were about ten more similar check
posts.
We had instances where our site
staff was fired upon by AK47. Luckily
the occupants were safe, and the
bullets pierced the car mud guards.
Shooting, looting intimidation were
daily rituals in that section.
Live line stringing of one circuit
(10-km 225kV line) was to be done
while the other circuit feeding the
third country Burkina Faso was
already energized. Only for final
tensioning brief shutdowns were
taken. For this the coordination had
to be done with multiple authorities
in three countries—Mali, Ivory
Coast and Burkina Faso.
While the project work was in final
stage, there was a military coup in
Mali. We had made an evacuation
plan for the safety of the personnel.
Some people were shifted, but we
established a perfect liaison with the
local authorities and our embassy
and carried out the work taking
the risk factor in account. Had we
evacuated the personnel at that time,
it would have taken a minimum one
more year for completion and that
too at an exorbitant additional cost.
At that time, the total installed
power generation capacity of Mali
was around 250 mw. With the
commissioning of this project, the
country got an additional 100 mw
of reliable power. The power supply
was a boon for society in general
and particularly helped flourishing
of the cottage industry.
India has envisioned huge capital
expenditure in the power TD sector
right from setting up of EHV power
transmission infrastructure right
down to village electrification. How
do you see business opportunities
in India?
India has been the frontrunner in
energy sector investment. This has
brought in the pace in the power
TD sector towards network growth
and reliable grid power. Yes, with
the current plans of development
in TD sector right up to village
electrification we see major
opportunities. State utilities with
help of Power Grid Corporation of
India are putting up more and more
capital towards strengthening of the
system and expansion thereof. We
are actively participating in various
upcoming packages.
Our international exposure and
workability with success in hostile
and difficult terrains will serve us
good in the domestic market.
Currently, what is the share of
power TD in your overall business
portfolio?
Angelique International Ltd has
its roots in core electrical sector
comprising energy and power TD
sector. It is backed up by strong-
willed professionals having rich
experience. The share of TD
business including generation in our
overall business portfolio is roughly
about 60 to 65 per cent, at present.
Do you envisage this share rising
in the coming years?
With active involvement in rising
opportunities in India we envisage
this share rising by another 10 per
cent in coming years.
What are the key milestones that
you would like to see Angelique
International crossing in the next
5-7 years, when it comes to your
power TD business?
We are already executing a 285-km
400kV transmission line in Nepal.
We are also executing a 400kV
substation project in Zimbabwe.
We have already proved our
competence in the 220kV segment
and are furthering our steps into the
400 kV segment.
In the next few years we see
ourselves doing 400kV and 765kV
power TD projects in India and
abroad, in full swing. We are also
seeking opportunities in the 500kV
segment outside India. n
115kV multi-circuit line, Laos
220/110/33kV Singa substation, Sudan

Achievement
BB has teamed up with Power Grid Corporation
of India Ltd in a mega project worth over Rs.4,350
crore for ABB to deliver a transmission link that
will have the capacity to bring reliable electricity to more
than 80 million people. The Raigarh-Pugalur 800kV ultra
high voltage direct current (UHVDC) system will connect
Raigarh in Central India to Pugalur in Tamil Nadu.
The 1,830-km link will be among the longest in the
world. With a capacity of 6,000 mw, it will be enough to
meet the electricity needs of over 80 million people in
India. The two-way link will integrate thermal and wind
energy for transmission of power to high consumption
centers located thousands of kilometers away, supporting
electricity demands in the south, when wind strength is
low, and transmitting clean energy to the north, when
there is excess wind power, a release from ABB said.
The total project value is worth more than Rs.5,700 crore
and the balance will be executed by ABB’s consortium
partner Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. The project is
expected to be completed in 2019.
In the release, Sanjeev Sharma, CEO and Managing
Director, ABB India, said, “It will be a milestone in the
efficient transmission of power on high voltage direct
current lines between central and south India and
integration of renewable energy in a smart grid. It is a
great example of the Make in India initiative where
design, engineering, manufacturing of major components
and project execution is done locally.”
ABB has an impressive HVDC track-record in India,
where it introduced the technology over 25 years ago with
the Vindhyachal project in 1989. Raigarh-Pugalur is ABB’s
sixth HVDC project in India and the second UHVDC
installation, following the multi-terminal North-East Agra
link, which has been already partially energized and is in
the final phase of completion.
UHVDC transmission is a development of HVDC, a
technology pioneered by ABB more than 60 years ago.
ABB has been awarded about 110 HVDC projects, which
represents a total installed capacity of more than 120,000
MW and accounts for around half the global installed
base.
HVDC transmission links help to conserve land as
they occupy only one third of the space compared to
the alternative. In this case that amounts to a saving
of approximately 244 sqkm of space, which for a frame
of reference, is around one third the area of Bangalore
city. n
A
HVDC transmission lines help conserve land as they occupy only one
third of the space compared to the alternative. In the Raigarh-Pugalur
line land savings will be around one third the area of Bangalore.
Valve halls like this one (North-East Agra station) are to be built for
the new UHVDC link between Raigarh-Pugalur.
Achievement
ABB lands its second
UHVDC project in India
The 800 kV UHVDC link between Raigarh-Pugalur is 1,830 km long
and has a capacity of 6,000 mw, enough to meet the electricity needs
of approximately 80 million people
ABB lands its second
UHVDC project in India

interview
Sharper Shape, as we understand,
is a leader in “aerial” works.
Please summarize, in simple terms,
the various services you offer,
especially in the field of power
transmission.
Sharper Shape is a drone service
company that uses beyond-visual-
line-of-sight (or long-distance)
drone flights for utility asset
inspections. The Sharper A6 drone
captures millions of data points on
utility assets and neighboring trees
(height, weight, species, proximity
to power lines) to allow companies
to see and assess the most serious
risks to the power grid.
In short, Sharper Shape services
include:
• Vegetation management:
Automated LiDAR clearance
and risk analysis, complete with
growth forecasting, provides
utilities with an efficient and cost-
effective way to scan thousands of
miles of trees and their proximity
to power lines.
• Maintenance inspection: HD
photo, video, corona detection,
thermography and LiDAR in
one flight. These high resolution
images and precise measurements
can reveal even the smallest risks
in grid components, ranging from
a small crack in an insulator blade
to an exact location of a corroded
conductor.
• Asset management: Total
asset base awareness to plan a
scheduled overhaul or rebuilding
after a disaster. Gathered data sets
can be stored in a cloud ecosystem
and quickly analyzed directly
after collection in order to plan
immediate and future field work.
We understand that your bouquet
of services broadly comprises
drones, measuring equipment and
software. Tell us more.
Our technology consists of our
Sharper A6 drone, Sharperscope 5.0
and our Sharper software.
The Sharper A6 is the world’s
first drone engineered to fly
extended beyond-visual-line-
of-sight missions. It has already
flown and surveyed thousands of
kilometers of transmission and
distribution lines in Finland. It has
four redundant cellular networks to
make it virtually impossible for the
drone to lose communication with
ground control or get intercepted.
Power transmission
is an area that is
fast embracing new
technologies for
maintenance and even
planning. One such
emerging technology
is drones. Sharper
Shape, a drone service
company, recently
entered India through a
partnership with Sterlite
Power. In this exclusive
exchange,
Tero Heinonen
tells us how the
developed world is
fast appreciating the
deployment of drones
as a cost-effective and
even environment-
friendly means for aerial
surveys. Heinonen feels
that India, with its focus
on power transmission,
can be an interesting
market for Sharper
Shape. An interaction
by Venugopal Pillai.
The use of drones can increase
the uptime of the Indian grid
— Tero Heinonen, CEO,
Sharper Shape Inc.
Sharperscope 5.0

interview
It also leverages the LTE multi-
billion-dollar commercial networks
while others are using unreliable
point-to-point (P2P) connections,
or expensive and invariably latent
satellite connections.
Sharperscope 5.0 is the only
platform capable of collecting
data from all of the following in a
single flight: HD cameras, infrared
sensors, corona detector, LiDAR
sensor.
Our Sharper software
automatically compiles all the
inspection data for each individual
asset, and flags issues that may
need the inspector’s attention.
Our software is also able to
automatically detect vegetation
issues such as encroachment, risky
growth patterns and skewed trees.
We learn that Sharper Shape has
reached an agreement with Indian
utility Sterlite Power. Is this your
first exposure to India? What is
the scope of the collaboration with
Sterlite Power?
We formed a partnership with
Sterlite Power in 2016 to provide
drone inspection services for
utility assets in India. As part of
the agreement, Sterlite made a
minority investment in Sharper
Shape to foster Indian market
growth and tech development.
Together, we’re currently awaiting
approvals for long-distance drone
flights. In the meantime, we are
preparing the necessary steps such
as the long-distance flight plans,
and are conducting visual-line-of-
sight test flights with the Sharper
A6 and Sharperscope 5.0 multi-
sensor system.
India has a power transmission
networkofmorethanamillioncircuit
kilometers which is undergoing
double-digit growth annually.
The use of drones will increase
the uptime of the grid, reduce
transmission tariffs, avoid grid
blackouts and save the environment
by reducing deforestation.
Apart from USA, your country of
origin, which countries currently
dominate your business portfolio?
Do you operate in emerging
nations?
In addition to the US and India, we
have a strong presence in Europe,
considering we were founded in
Finland and were the first to conduct
commercial beyond-visual-line-
of-sight drone asset inspections in
Europe. We are also making strides
in Asia and South America, as
well.
We fully expect the demand for
drone inspection services to grow
dramatically in the immediate
future, with more utilities worldwide
adopting drones for inspection and
maintenance purposes. And it is
not just utilities that can benefit.
In fact, critical assets like oil and
gas pipelines, wind turbines and
railways can benefit from drone
inspections.
India needs long transmission
lines, often passing through forests
and other protected vegetation.
Securing right-of-way many times
becomes a hurdle. Do you have
specific solutions for this aspect?
This is an issue we are familiar with.
Our vegetation analysis software
has been successfully used to plan
new transmission lines in Finland
(a very densely forested country
with 78 per cent of land area being
forested land). Sharper Shape was
able to identify the optimal routing
to minimize the extent of forestry
work needed and the impact of the
right-of-way to the local fauna and
flora.
Furthermore, our drone-based
vegetation management service
provides a clear ecological
advantage over more traditional
alternatives. Once the transmission
line is built, our battery-powered
drones are a much more silent and
environmentally-friendly way of
inspection than using helicopters
or land patrols in 4x4 vehicles.
This point has also come up
in our recent tests in the United
States, where there is protected
fauna that inhabits the right-of-way
of power lines in California and the
Midwest.
What specific services of Sharper
Shape do you see India benefiting
from?
We believe that the vege0tation
management and maintenance
inspection services can be used
in India almost immediately and
for instant benefit. Utilizing a
more modern and efficient way of
inspectingandmaintaintheexisting
lines can increase reliability for the
end consumer while lowering the
cost and electricity losses for the
power producers, so both sides win.
At a time when electricity demand
in India is increasing yearly, this
could prove helpful for the further
electrification of the country and
help industrial productivity. n
Sharper A6 preparing for flight
Sharper Shape Inc.
Sharper A6 close-up Sharper A6 on ground

SCS has assessed that ACCC
conductors developed by CTC
Global can reduce CO2 emissions
by 27-31 per cent vis-à-vis ACSR
conductors. Tell us more about
how the underlying tests were
performed. How long did the entire
process take?
Testing of the ACCC® conductor
began back in 2003 and continues to
this day to satisfy the requirements
of a growing number of international
customers. While members of
the power generation and TD
community are close in many ways
and collaborate on many levels
through organizations such as IEEE,
Cigre,EEIandothers,onanotherlevel
the community is quite fragmented.
In other words, individual utilities
often have very different viewpoints
on asset management, technology
adoption and operating parameters
which is the primary reason why
testing continues after nearly fifteen
years.
While SCS Global Services studied
allavailabledata,theyalsoperformed
numerous calculations using the
IEEE 738 Standard for calculating
the current-temperature relationship
of bare overhead conductors to assess
line losses using an array of operating
assumptions and conditions through
a range of voltages, line lengths,
etc., which are described in their
assessment report. SCS Global also
used CTC Global’s CCP™ software
which is an excel-based program
CTC Global’s customers use to assess
the efficiency, capacity, economics
and sag of any conductor type. As
part of the six month process, SCS
also certified the validity of the CCP
program which anyone can request a
free copy of at www.ctcglobal.com
Tell us more about the global
acceptance of the SCS certificate
and the positive impact that it will
have on ACCC conductors.
ACCC conductor is the first
conductor among its competitors to
receive certification under the ISO
14044:2006 Standard established for
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The
Standard,createdbytheInternational
Organization for Standardization
(the same organization responsible
for the ISO 9001 standard) is
CTC Global ACCC®
(aluminium conductor
composite core) conductor
recently became the first
electric transmission
conductor in history to
earn SCS certification for
CO2 emission reductions
resulting from improved
energy efficiency. SCS Global
Services (SCS) verified that
ACCC conductor reduces
CO2 emissions associated
with transmission line losses
by 27 to 31 per cent under
certain design conditions
compared to conventional
steel reinforced ACSR
conductors, the 100-year old
technology currently used in
most electric transmission
and distribution power lines.
We have Dave Bryant,
Director – Technology, CTC
Global Corporation, explaining
what this distinction means
to his company and to the
power transmission sector at
large. An interaction by
Venugopal Pillai.
The SCS certification can drive
better adoption of ACCC conductors
Interview Focus: Power Transmission

interview
used globally as the basis of LCA
studies and claims. As a natural
consequence, the certification can
be used in any part of the world to
make the claims mentioned in the
certificate. Because ACCC was the
first high performance conductor
to receive such a certification, it
establishes CTC Global’s leadership
position in contributing to global
climate change mitigation efforts.
This will not only drive greater
adoption of ACCC conductors owing
to its inherent advantages but will
also bring about the much needed
realization that efficient transmission
is an important method for achieving
carbon reduction objectives.
Of the various countries that CTC
Global caters to, which countries
would be most “sensitive” and
“responsive” to this newly-acquired
distinction?
We believe that all countries, whether
developed or developing, will find
it in their best interest to consider
the ACCC conductor in light of the
newly-acquired distinction. In the
case of developed countries, there
is a strong case for installing ACCC
not only to relieve congested lines
but also provide a cutting-edge
solution for smart grid and other
grid expansion initiatives where
reliability is the key differentiator.
As for emerging economies, the case
could not be stronger. With rapid
expansion in both population and
attendant infrastructure, the reliable
and efficient supply of electricity will
be crucial to economic development
goals at any level. We see Asia, Africa
and Latin America as key for us
among emerging markets as well as
the US and Western Europe among
other developed markets.
How do you see the impact,
especially in India and China,
where reduction in CO2
emissions
is a strong national priority?
India and China are key markets
for CTC Global. India is among the
fastest growing emerging economies
and is the 4th largest GHG emitter
globally -- the result of a fossil-fuel
intensive grid mix. Furthermore, the
government has ambitious plans of
providing electricity to an additional
25 per cent of the population by 2022,
as per the World Bank. Given these
circumstances, there is going to be
a massive requirement for power
infrastructure which will require
high performance transmission
conductors. India is also a signatory
nation to the Copenhagen and Paris
Climate Accords with ambitious
goals for carbon reduction all the
while maintaining exceptionally
strong economic growth. This will
not be possible without significant
upgrade and expansion to the
power infrastructure. The ACCC
conductor, despite being a minor
element within the grander scheme,
can play a major role at least in the
transmission and distribution space.
The fact that ACCC conductors
provide enhanced capacity and
efficiency relative to competing
conductors, will and is producing
significant interest within the
Indian market. Aggressive targets
for renewable energy development
further add to this impetus.
The Chinese story is very similar.
China, the largest GHG emitter is
also signatory to the Paris Agreement
and has set a goal to reduce carbon
intensity 60-65 per cent below 2005
levels by 2030. We believe that
efficient energy transmission within
the grid can be a further tool to meet
China’s ambitious carbon mitigation
targets.
Lastly, while it is very easy to
imagine CO2
emissions during
power generation, can you explain
how CO2
emissions are actually
caused during power transmission?
CO2
emissions are not caused by
the transmission or distribution of
electricity. However, line losses or
other system inefficiencies consume
a significant portion of all electricity
generated. A reduction in line losses
serves to reduce the amount of
electricity required to be generated
under any given load condition.
A reduction in generation serves
to reduce fuel consumption and
associated emissions. For instance,
for every megawatt hour (MWh)
of electricity generated using coal,
nearly one tonne of CO2
is generated.
The ACCC conductor’s ability to
reduce line losses by approximately
30 per cent compared to ACSR
conductors is making a significant
impact.
One year ago when approximately
30,500 km of ACCC had been in
service over a twelve month period,
it was estimated that the ACCC
conductor reduced CO2
emissions
by over 12.2 million tonnes that
year, based on an average emission
output of 0.626 tonnes per MWh
(considering all combined sources of
generation). This was the equivalent
of removing over 2.6 million cars
from the road during that time frame.
With nearly 40,000 km of ACCC in
service today in 40 countries at
nearly 450 project sites, that number
will surely grow. n

S E T R U MPS C

S E C T R U MPS
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Adinath Extrusion Pvt Ltd 7 Gurud Industries 37 Pradeep Sales Service Pvt Ltd 38 Sumip Composites Pvt Ltd 43 (IBC)
Anand Engineering Corpration 36 IEEMA Meetering India 2017 19 Precision Wires India Ltd 2 (IFC) Supreme Electroplast Industries 37
Atlas Filtration Services 36 ITMA 17 R R Enterprises 38 Trak Enterprises 36
Braco Electricals (India) Pvt Ltd 9 Jay International 37 Reliserv Solutions 37 Transpower India Electronics Pvt Ltd 38
Calter (STI Industries) 37 Madhav Engineers Pvt Ltd 5 Shree NM Unilog Industricals Supplies Pvt. Ltd 13 Urja Infratech Power Projects (I) Pvt Ltd 37
Deccan Engineering Services 36 Mathura Switchgears Pvt Ltd 36 Slimlites Electricals Pvt Ltd 44 (BC) Vinayak Corporation 37
Electro Care (India) Pvt.Ltd. 38 Myriad Industrial Solutions LLP 36 Spark Electrosystems 37
Elektra Precisioion Systems 36 Neutronics Manufacturing Company 36 State Enterprises 27
Epcos India Pvt Ltd 11 Om Indutries 37 Sterlite Power Transmission Ltd 3
Corrigendum
In the February 2017 edition of TD India, on page 20, the name of
the CEO of mjunction services limited should read as Vinaya Varma
and not as published. The error is regretted.
-Editor

Prysmian Group has announced
that its newly established Chilean
affiliate is now fully operational.
The South American market is
experiencing growth in both the
energy and telecom sectors, and
Chile is one of the most promising
markets in the continent. Prysmian
has been selling into the Chilean
market for many years and has
decided to open a local legal entity
in order to expand its reach in the
country, a release from Prysmian
said. Initially Prysmian Chile will
operate through a local warehouse,
making available Prysmian Group’s
entire product range to the local
market, the release added.
Building on the strategic alliance
between Siemens and Bentley
Systems, that was made public
in November, 2016, Siemens’
Energy Management Division and
Bentley Systems have announced
an agreement to jointly develop
solutions to accelerate digitalization
ofplanning,designandoperationsfor
power utilities and industrial power
customers. Bentley Systems is a
global leader in software solutions for
advancing the design, construction,
and operations of infrastructure.
The first of the new offerings will
integrate Bentley System’s utility
design and geographic information
systems (GIS) capabilities with
Siemens’ Power System Simulation
(PSS) Suite, with specific solutions
for power transmission, power
distribution and industrial facilities.
Combining these two platforms
provides customers with Bentley’s
expertise in 3D infrastructure asset
modelling and GIS with Siemens’
knowledgeandrenownedexperience
in energy system planning and
simulation.
Prysmian Group has secured a £27-
million contract with East Anglia
One Ltd to supply and install the
land cable connection for the East
Anglia ONE offshore wind farm.
Comprising of 102 turbines, the
£2.5-billion wind farm will generate
sufficientelectricitytopower500,000
homes. The contract involves the
supply and installation of a 220kV
double circuit from the Bawdsey
shore landing to a new substation in
Bramford – covering a route of some
37km.Prysmianisresponsibleforthe
system design, supply, installation
and testing of the cables and their
accessories. The underground high
voltage cables will be manufactured
by Prysmian and installed by its UK-
based installation division, relying
on the expertise of its technical
design team.
ScottishPower Renewables has
chosen Nexans’ submarine cables
to carry energy onshore from its new
714 mw East Anglia ONE offshore
windfarm. Nexans will supply and
install two 85 km 3-core submarine
cables with embedded fibre optics, as
well as accompanying accessories,
for the wind farm in the North Sea.
The contract is worth more than 180
million euros. The new wind farm,
due to be finished in 2020, will be
made of up 102 wind turbines with
a capacity to power around 500,000
homes. The entire project is worth
nearly €3 billion. Nexans will type
test, manufacture and then install the
high voltage cables and accessories
at the 300 sqkm site. The turnkey
contract includes a pre-installation
survey and cable protection by
burying. Delivery of the cables will
begin in 2018. DeepOcean has been
subcontrtacted by Nexans to perform
the transport and installation scope
which will comprise all marine
installation activities including
crossings and cable protection.
International technology group
Andritz has received an order from
Energie Steiermark to supply the
electromechanical equipment for
a new hydropower plant to be built
in the Puntigam district of Graz.
Commissioning is planned for the
first half of 2019. Andritz Hydro will
supply two bulb turbines (capacity:
2x9-mw) with a runner diameter of
3,600 mm each, including speed
controllers as well as generators and
excitation systems. A major part of
the equipment will be produced in
Andritz Hydro’s production facilities
in Austria, mainly at the generator
manufacturing plant in Weiz, thus
providing local value added. The
power station will be equipped with
a fish-ladder and will supply clean,
renewable energy for around 20,000
households, thus reducing carbon
emissions by 60,000 tonnes of CO2
annually.
NI has announced the opening
of the new NI Industrial IoT
(Internet of Things) Lab at its Austin
headquarters. The NI Industrial
IoT Lab focuses on intelligent
systems that connect operational
technology, information technology
and the companies working on these
systems. Designed with flexibility for
the future, the lab’s operational focus
includes areas such as microgrid
control and communication,
advanced control for manufacturing,
and asset monitoring for heavy
equipment.
Wartsila will supply two 50-mw smart
power generation plants to energy
and services company Centrica in
the UK. Each plant is based on five
Wartsila 34SG engines running
on natural gas. The power plants
are scheduled to be operational
in 2018. Wartsila’s scope covers
the engineering, procurement and
construction (EPC). The order is
booked in January, 2017. The plants
will be the biggest medium-speed
engine-based gas power plants in
the UK, an official release from
Wartsila noted. n
Global Snippets

Photo Feature
Intelect 2017
A journey in pictures

number story
Programme vs Achievement of Transmission Lines and Substations
Voltage 2016-17 Programme
December 2016 April-December 2016
Programme Achievement Programme Achievement
Transmission Lines (ckm)
+/-800kV HVDC
Central Sector 2,597 0 0 2,597 2,574
State Sector 0 0 0 0 0
Total 2,597 0 0 2,597 2,574
+/-500kV HVDC
Central Sector 0 0 0 0 0
JV/Private Sector 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0
765kV
Central Sector 3,123 0 552 3,123 4,025
State Sector 750 0 0 750 337
JV/Private Sector 1,313 0 377 1,133 1,327
Total 5,186 0 929 5,006 5,689
400kV
Central Sector 3,953 421 199 2,889 2,674
State Sector 5,799 2,070 1,068 5,485 3,361
JV/Private Sector 762 0 362 942 1,801
Total 10,514 2,491 1,629 9,316 7,836
200kV
State Sector 5,009 530 530 4,132 4,423
Total 5,087 530 530 4,132 4,471
Grand Total 23,384 3,021 3,088 21,051 20,570
Substations (MVA)
+/-800kV HVDC
Central Sector 1,500 0 0 1,500 1,500
State Sector 0 0 0 0 0
Total 1,500 0 0 1,500 1,500
+/-500kV HVDC
Total 0 0 0 0 0
765kV
Central Sector 10,500 1,500 3,000 10,500 12,000
State Sector 1,500 0 0 1,500 3,000
Total 14,000 1,500 3,000 14,000 16,500
400kV
Central Sector 9,890 1,130 500 6,075 9,240
State Sector 13,015 500 830 10,385 7,825
Total 24,905 1,630 1,330 18,460 19,065
200kV
State Sector 4,783 580 1,200 4,003 10,470
Total 4,783 580 1,200 4,003 10,470
Grand Total 45,188 3,710 5,530 37,963 47,535
Source: Central Electricity Authority

Power Grid Corporation of India has
announced that it has sold its entire holding in
its erstwhile wholly-owned subsidiary Power
System Operation Corporation (POSOCO) to
the government of India. Accordingly, 306.40
lakh equity shares of Rs.10 each were sold
for a total consideration of Rs.81.21 crore,
PGCIL said in a stock exchange notification.
Crompton Greaves Ltd has received
shareholders’ approval for changing the
company’s name to CG Power and Industrial
Solutions Ltd, the company informed in a
stock exchange filing. Crompton Greaves
Ltd was incorporated in 1937, as ‘Crompton
Parkinson Works Private Ltd’ but changed its
name to ‘Crompton Parkinson Works Ltd’ in
1960 when it became public. In 1966, the
company’s name was changed to ‘Crompton
Greaves Ltd.’ At present, the company is
operating in a fully integrated B2B segment
comprising two business – power TD
and industry.
Competition Commission of India has
Schneider Electric’s proposed purchase
of the remaining 26 per cent in power
backup solutions provider Luminous
Power Technologies. In 2011, Schneider
Electric had acquired 74 per cent of
Luminous Power Technologies (LPT) for
a total consideration of Rs 1,400 crore.
Schneider would now acquire 26 per
cent shares of LPT presently held by the
founder shareholders, resulting in their
exit and Schneider acquiring full control
of the company.
Tata Power’s total non-fossil operating
capacity stood at 3,060 mw as of January
17, 2017, making it the largest renewable
energy company in India, a company release
said. The portfolio included 693 mw of
hydropower, 918 mw of solar, 1,074 mw
of wind, and 375 mw of waste gas-based
generation. In FY16, Tata Power Renewable
Energy Ltd (TPREL), a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Tata Power, completed the
acquisition of Welspun Renewables Energy
Pvt Ltd (WREPL) that had over 1 GW of
renewable power projects comprising 862
mw solar power projects.
Suzlon Group has achieved 10 GW of
cumulative wind energy installations all
over India, a company release said. The
Pune-headquartered company has installed
over 7,500 turbines nationwide, the release
observed. Suzlon’s cumulative global wind
installations amounted to 15,500 mw with a
presence across 17 countries.
Asian Development Bank has reportedly
approved a new $390-million financing
package for ReNew Power to develop
renewable energy projects in India. With the
financing, ReNew Power will develop solar
photovoltaic projects with combined capacity
of 398 mw in Jharkhand and Telangana, and
wind power projects with combined capacity
of 311 mw in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat,
Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh. The plants
are scheduled to be commissioned by
December 2017. The generated electricity
will be supplied to respective state power
distribution companies under long term
power purchase agreements.
Energy Efficiency Services (EESL) has
planned to provide nearly 70 lakh pump
sets across Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra,
Rajasthan and Karnataka. The new pump
sets, being distributed free of cost, will also
come with free repair and maintenance
services. The move follows a pilot project
undertakenbytheBureauofEnergyEfficiency
in Maharashtra’s Solapur circle, under which
2,209 pump sets were replaced with the new
energy-efficient pump sets. This resulted
in about 30 per cent energy savings, EESL
said.
NTPC Ltd has informed that the first unit of
250 mw of the 4x250-mw Nabinagar thermal
power project of Bhartiya Rail Bijlee Company
Ltd (BRBCL), a subsidiary of NTPC, was
declared commercial effective January 15,
2017. BRBCL was incorporated in 2007 as
a 74:26 joint venture between NTPC and the
ministry of railways for setting up of four
coal-fired power units of 250-mw each at
Nabinagar, Bihar.
NTPC has announced the acquisition of the
Chhabra thermal power plant belonging to
Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Ltd.
The acquisition involves the operational plant
with four units of 250-mw each, and the
2x660-mw extension that is currently under
construction.
Sensus, a Xylem brand and global supplier
of utility-grade communications systems and
smart meters, announces its increasing focus
in the Indian market with the opening of its
first global support center in Hyderabad. India
is at the leading edge of smart city rollouts
and Hyderabad is the next emerging hub in
terms of adoption of Internet of Things
(IoT) technologies to build smart cities.
The new center represents a strategic
investment for Sensus and will support
business operations in India and across
the globe, a release from Sensus said.
Vertiv, formerly Emerson Network
Power, has announced the successful
conclusion of its annual ‘Annual India
Sales, Service and Channel Conference
FY 2017’ in Goa. The conference with
the theme “Start Strong, Finish Strong,”
saw an attendance from over 360
participants, consisting of business
partners and members from the Vertiv
sales, service and channel teams across
India. The conference witnessed the grand
launch of the new Vertiv brand at the hands
of the Asia Pacific President, Stephen Liang.
Tata Power Solar, which makes solar cells and
modules, has announced it has achieved the
milestone of shipping out of its factories 1 GW
worth of modules, cumulatively. Tata Power
Solar has a manufacturing unit in Bengaluru
with production capacity of 300 mw modules
and 180 mw of cells. The company has
completed over 250 mw of ground-mounted
large scale solar plants and 112 mw of
rooftop plants. The company was set up in
1989, initially as a joint venture between Tata
Power and BP (British Petroleum). It become
a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Power in
2012. n
Short Takes

n Published on 10th of every month

T&D India (February 2017) – Transition in Transmission

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