With increasing concerns about energy efficiency, distribution loss reduction is again assuming a role of prominence in the utility industry. For most North American utilities, the 1 percent or 2 percent of additional peak capacity that could be derived through loss reduction would provide significant savings.

Reducing Distribution Losses
Without Breaking the Bank

By Steve Eckles, El Paso Electric Co.

Besides the financial implications, low-loss design also improves
reliability, lessens power quality concerns, and better accommo-
dates customer load growth. And, there’s an environmental
twist to lowering distribution losses: Lowering distribution
losses reduces the amount of pollutants and greenhouse
gasses from hydro-carbon based power plants.
Utilities can reduce distribution losses by con-
centrating on the design and operation of the
distribution system. However, some of these
loss-reduction measures require financial
commitment, forcing energy-conscious
utilities to balance loss savings with capi-
tal investment.

Distribution Loss Modeling and
Reduction Strategies
Distribution technical loss-
es, i.e. losses resulting from
operational inefficiencies,
are generally divided
into two types: load

References:

http://www.utility-automation.com

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