Electrical Substations

Substation Protection

The End of the Road for Transmission Incentives

In a significant shift, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has decided to abandon its transmission incentives policy, particularly the construction work in progress (CWIP) incentives. This decision marks a pivotal change in how transmission projects are financed and regulated,...

Substation Automation

Building a better world of smart structures on the smart grid

It is a truth universally acknowledged that billions of people around the world live in poverty. But does it have to be that way? Today’s technological progress means that tomorrow we will be able to produce more, more efficiently – lifting people above the breadline with accelerated...

Lightning Protection

Grounding System Maintenance Guide

Grounding systems are a crucially important component of any power supply system, because they directly impact public and employee safety, supply system reliability, power quality and life expectancy of power equipment. In spite of their crucial role in safe, reliable, and economic operation of...

Physical Security & Monitoring

The Fight Against Animal-Caused Power Outages

Every day across North America, animals enter electrical substations in search of warmth, food, shelter, or simply out of curiosity. What often begins as routine wildlife behaviour can escalate quickly into serious grid reliability issues. In many service territories, wildlife intrusion is now the...

Breakers & Relays

Utilizing Fault Resistance to Test Distance Relays

Taking power grid protection to an all-new level BY JASON BUNEO & RENE AGUILAR, Megger The testing of distance relays has evolved from testing simple electromechanical relays to the newest modern microprossesor relays. Most modern relays employ advanced algorithms that not only compare the...

Substation Testing & Maintenance

ACCELERATING TOWARDS GREATER TESTING EFFICIENCY - A true transformer test van

Test lead management, including quality of connection and correct lead placement, is an important part of testing. Poor or incorrect connections can be the culprit for nonrepresentative results that ultimately lead to longer test times and, in some cases, wasteful investigations...

Home Transformation Electrical Substations

Properly Grounded Substations

Adequate utility grounding improves power quality, but more importantly, it is essential for worker safety as well as public protection. Design is critical in maintaining a safe equipotential environment all around the substation.

Construction is important to accommodate fault currents without leaving the substation with dangerous potential gradients.

A tester must establish a sufficiently low resistance to remote earth so that operation remains within safe parameters. Similarly, safe step and touch potentials must be...