Tasked with carrying heavy loads from points of generation to load centers, the transmission system has always been the transportation workhorse of the electric grid, its Goliath-a brawny giant, its warrior champion. But this modern Goliath also has David's smarts.
Though there is a popular notion out there that ''smart grid'' equals ''smart meters,'' in fact the transmission system has been growing ever more intelligent for many years, worldwide and-more quietly-in the United States. A recent discussion with Enrique Santacana, chief executive officer for ABB North America, brought this back into focus. ''In Europe, the focus in smart grid is coming from the high-voltage side,'' he explained. ''In the U.S., the focus is on smart meters and AMI (advanced metering infrastructure). And although the AMI discussion is very active, now discussions are happening in substation automation, as well.''
Bernhard Jucker, ABB's head of power products worldwide, further explained the distinction between the two countries (ABB is active in both) in terms of smart grid development. ''The starting point is quite different,'' he said. ''In Europe, distribution is a circular topology. In the U.S., it's a feeder topology.'' But thoughts are changing federally with regard to transmission. While AMI projects are being heavily supported by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), there's also stimulus funding going to grid storage and synchrophasor projects. Both of these will, ultimately, benefit both the transmission and distribution portions of the grid.
And while there are still some issues to be settled, regional planning in transmission is moving quickly in the United States. According to Greg Scheu, president of ABB North America's power products division, interconnection has not yet been optimized in the United States, but talk of more of a federal role for transmission planning has caused the regions to move more quickly.
