43rd CIGRÉ Biennial Session (22nd - 27th August 2010)

The International Council on Large Electric Systems attracts international

delegates to France’s beautiful Capital City of Paris

CIGRE’s 43rd General Session since it’s formation in France in 1921 was held in Paris

in the final week of August 2010. This International Conference and Exhibition on

Large High Voltage Electric Systems continues to attract an increasing number of

international delegates with some 3005 travelling from over 82 countries. The five-

day Technical Programme of the Conference was this year supported by a record

number of 130 Exhibitors representing the industry’s manufacturers, utilities,

consultants and service providers from around the world. The magnificent Palais des

Congrès de Paris was once again the venue for all events, a very attractive and

convenient location from which to walk to the Arc de Triomphe and visit many of

Paris’s famous landmarks

These General Sessions, held every two years in Paris are reputed to be the world’s

largest platform for the electricity industry experts to share their knowledge, expertise

and experience. In 2010 the electricity industry again faces major challenges in order

to satisfy the increasing demand for an economic, reliable and secure of electrical

energy at a time when the global fossil fuel resources are rapidly diminishing. Many

forms of sustainable renewable energy systems have been developed and are now

being commissioned in order to comply with the global and national aims to limit and

reduce global warming.

The content of this year’s Technical Programme therefore addressed all the challenges

presented from the need to interconnect large renewable energy projects to

transmission systems, to the large scale transmission system interconnectors that

employ the latest HVAC and HVDC technologies. The Programme benefits from

CIGRÉ’s organisational structure by presenting the latest developments linked to the

key components of the transmission system namely, rotating machines, substations,

transformers, overhead lines and cables moving forward to consider system design,

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operation, control, management and performance. The benefits available from the

advanced information and telecommunication systems technologies now in wide-scale

use in the industry were also included in the Programme as they play an increasing

role in the industry and in particular in the development of ‘Smart Grids’ now being

considered by transmission and distribution utilities.

The CIGRÉ General Sessions continues to offer every attendee the opportunity to

benefit and share the knowledge and experience available from the industry’s experts

on all aspects of research, manufacturing and utility management. As previously the

Technical Conference this year was well programmed addressing all the major issues

in the sixteen Specialist Subject Sessions. Therefore, every attendee was given the

opportunity to contribute and participate in the discussions with the industry experts.

Opening Ceremony and Keynote Address

The Opening Ceremony held on Sunday afternoon 22nd August 2010 was followed by

Keynote Address entitled “Initiatives by the Power Industry towards Low Carbon

Emission Society ” given by Mr. Shosuke Mori, Former Chairman of the Federation

of Electric Power Companies of Japan (FEPC) and current Chairman of the Board of

Directors for the Kansai Electric Power Company Inc. The key points of his Address

were as follows: -

“While accepting the need for minimizing the emission of carbon dioxide and the

need for optimal utilisation of the existing fossil fuel sources, Japan a country lacking

in natural energy resources is faced with a dilemma. By concentrating on achieving

energy savings as a result of high energy efficiency, Japan is now one of the lowest

carbon emitting societies in the world.

Japan is trying to establish a Law for the Prevention of Global Warming, legislation

that will address carbon tax, promote emission trading and feed-in tariffs for

renewable energy generation projects. The electric power companies have introduced

the ‘triple E’ concept, namely, Energy security, Economy and Environmental

protection. Nuclear power generation is now regarded as the key ‘triple E’ solution

but ultra-super critical coal fired plants and advanced combined-cycle gas turbine

plants are still being installed.

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The high economic growth in the 1960’s has resulted in ageing transmission and

distribution assets that are now in need of replacement or refurbishment to achieve

increased efficiency. Consideration of the demand side is expected to lead to energy

savings and reduced emissions from fossil-fuel plants.. In addition to heat pump

technologies for space heating, electric vehicles or plug-in electric vehicles have the

potential for the economic reduction of emissions.

Outlining the Smart Grid situation in Japan, Mr. Mori said, “The challenge

corresponded to a movement towards the huge installation of renewable energy

generation, especially photo-voltaic cells”.

The Government has set an ambitious target of 28GW of photovoltaic cell capacity by

2020, some 15% of the total system demand. This could give rise to surplus power

and frequency disturbances creating major challenges for power system operation as

significant output from the installed solar power would not be required during off-

peak periods when nuclear and hydro-power plants continue to generate. The

Japanese grid has developed the first installations of variable-speed pumped-storage

hydro-systems which could be used to control generated power rapidly and used as a

power storage system.

Therefore while enhancing clean and stable nuclear power generation the unstable

output from photovoltaic cells will be compensated by a new control system. This

system will regulate load following power plants and power storage equipment such

as batteries and variable-speed pump storage hydro power plants and predicting the

output of solar power generation thereby creating Japan’s ‘Smart Grid’

CIGRÉ President

André Merlin (CIGRÉ President) then expressed his thanks to Mr Mori before giving

the CIGRÉ members in attendance an update of the activities since 2008. Membership

had continued to grow and totalled 11,200 equivalent members by the end of 2009,

Asia and South America being the areas responsible for this significant increase. The

number of National Committees is now 57 and CIGRÉ membership now extends to

89 countries.

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In recognition of their significant contributions of services to CIGRÉ, the CIGRÉ

Medals were awarded to Professor Schramm (Germany) and to CIGRÉ’s retiring

Secretary General, Jean Kowal. At this point the newly appointed Secretary General

Mr. Francois Meslier was introduced to the audience. Before declaring the CIGRÉ

2010 General Session open, the President honoured paying tribute to the four former

CIGRÉ Presidents in attendance at the Ceremony, namely, Mr. Jerzy Lepecki

(Brazil), Mr. Michel Chamia (Sweden), Mr. David Croft (Australia) and Mr. Yves

Filion (Canada).

Technical Meetings Programme

The Technical Programme started on Monday 23rd August with two Major Sessions

that always attract the majority of the Conference delegates. This year the first-day

Opening Panel addressed ‘The Need for Technology & Intelligence in the Future

Power System’ in the morning, with the Workshop on ‘Large System Disturbances’

taking place after lunch.

The Need for Technology & Intelligence in the Future Power System’

This Meeting comprised of presentations by speakers from EPRI –USA, Switzerland,

ABB and Australia that covered the spectrum encompassed by the term ‘Smart Grid’

under the following titles: -

• Future Energy Networks – A Vision

• Towards a Smarter Grid: ABB’s Technology Perspective

• CIGRE’s Role – Shaping the Future

• Industry Smart Grid Interoperability – From Roadmap to Action

It was apparent that all the speakers shared a common vision on ‘Smart Grids’ namely

that there was a need to ‘Enhance Efficiency, Engage Customers, Ensure Reliability,

Enable Renewables and Electric Transportation’ . The means by which these goals are

achievable will vary due to the regional differences in electricity demand and

differences in the regional starting points and priorities that have already been

adopted. The various forms of renewable energy were reviewed highlighting their

benefits and disadvantages before presenting the range of existing and new

technologies that can be used to create the Smart Grid. These include technology to

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improve system intelligence, the application of UHV-AC transmission as in China,

increased use of HVDC transmission whilst taking advantage of the power electronic

devices, new cable technology and wide area control systems (WAMS and WACS)..

For the end-user more smart devices are required to be compatible with the smart

intelligent AMR and AMI energy metering equipment available. The presentations

included a number of examples of the Smart Grid Demonstration projects that feature

smart homes, distributed energy systems, use of electric vehicles and smart

substations etc. Research and development will play a major role if pre-determined

targets are to be met with the need for new systems for operation and control,

protection installation of storage systems and an increasing use of underground cable

networks. Currently, the CIGRÉ Study Committee are actively involved with all the

Smart Grid issues and will continue to play a major role in identifying the solutions

and specifying the equipment to create the ‘Future Energy Networks’.

Workshop (Monday pm) – ‘Large System Disturbances’

This Workshop discussed the latest large disturbances that are normally includes

those caused by natural disasters and human errors. The seven disturbances presented

at this year’s Workshop were almost entirely linked to the extreme weather conditions

experienced in different parts of the world in the period 2009 to 2010.

France/Spain January 2009 – The severe storm ‘Klaus’ that developed into a cyclone

was the worst experienced for 25 years caused extensive damage to the transmission

systems in Spain and France. In Spain the 200 km/hr (125mph) wind speeds caused

the collapsed of a number of 400 kV and 220 kV transmission line tower. The 233

recorded disturbances on transmission system resulted in actions being taken to

minimise the loss of system security. In France the 20 hour duration storm resulted in

115 substations and 116 overhead lines being isolated following the damage to the

overhead line system. The improvements made following the severe storm in 1999

however helped the system to withstand this storm.

Australia (January/February 2009) – The unprecedented heat wave conditions

experienced in south-east Australia resulted in massive bush fires in the Melbourne

Area, which in addition to the loss of human life caused severe damage to the 500kV,

330 kV and 220 kV transmission lines. These multiple circuit failures had an adverse

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impact on transmission security and the reserve planning strategy that being based on

1 in 10 year conditions proved inadequate. Action is therefore planned to review

design standards to withstand more extreme heat wave conditions as they also de-rate

circuit ratings.

Brazil (November 2009) – The major incident in Brazil that caused the loss of 40% of

the system demand and loss of supply to 50 million customers was excessive rainfall.

This caused multiple tripping of 765 kV transmission lines and flashovers resulting in

under-voltage and under frequency load shedding. Post-fault investigation revealed

that the inability of insulators to remain effective when subject to a rain intensity of

3mm/minute i.e. this reduced the flashover strength by 30%. Since this major outage,

booster sheds have been installed extensively on the transmission system.

Portugal (December 2009) – The REN transmission system in the Algarve and Lisbon

regions of Portugal were subjected to two storms that caused severe damage to the

supporting towers. This was the first time in 60 years that the towers had failed due to

wind speed but with record wind speeds of 220-km/hr (137 mph) they were

considerably in excess of the 150km/hr (93 mph) design wind speed. Some 350,000

customers were disconnected but 95% were re-connected within two days. The cost of

reconstruction was almost €10million.

Northern Ireland ( January 2010) – The snow and ice-storm caused extensive damage

to the 11kV distribution network but the transmission system suffered no physical

damage apart from experiencing numerous transient faults and circuit-breaker

operations on the 400 kV and 275 kV systems. The utility took six days to reconnect

the 130, 000 customers who lost supply, this extended time being due to the loos of

RTU’s caused by the storm.

The transmission system in China has increased rapidly with the China Southern

Power Grid Company (CSG) supplying 2.3 million customers, 18% of the population.

As the load centres are remote from the source of generation the transmission lines are

extremely long and as a result of the number of lightning incidents experienced, the

CSG reported that they have invested in defence schemes ranging from normal under-

frequency load shedding to the use of Wide Area Control Schemes (WACS).

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The major European incident in November 2006 (loss of supply to Western Europe)

has resulted in a number of changes to the operating rules of the former UCTE now

ENSTO-E, to ensure that each TSO has a greater awareness of the operation of

adjacent grids. . An information platform that allows all TSO’s to observe in real-time

the actual state of the whole UCTE system has been commissioned in order that

TSO’s can quickly react in the event of a large disturbance.

The events discussed in this Workshop serve to illustrate the variety of unpredictable

natural events that can occur. Therefore all transmission system operators should have

system restoration and emergency plans in place in order to cope with these events

that are not likely to diminish in the foreseeable future.

Conference Technical Programme

.The Conference Technical Meetings comprised a four-track programme that started

on Tuesday 24th August 2010 that offered delegates the opportunity to select the

subject of their choice from the 16 - Discussion Group Meetings. These Meetings

discuss the Papers submitted for each of the specialist subjects that CIGRÉ’s Study

Committees selected for presentation. From more than 570 Papers received from

authors around the world the CIGRÉ Technical Committee selected 414 Papers for

discussion. As always these Technical Meetings were well structured to include short

contributions from authors and delegates, who address the key issues and queries

identified by the Study Committee’s Special Reporter in advance of the Meeting. This

form of Discussion Meeting management gives each Chairman the opportunity to

invite delegates in attendance to contribute to the discussion with the authors of the

Papers presented.

The following Table shows the timetable for the Technical Meetings during the four-

track programme that ran from the 24th to 27th August 2010

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Date Special Subject

(No. of Technical Papers submitted to the Study Committee for each Session)

Tuesday 24th August

A3 – High Voltage Equipment (25 Papers) B4 - HVDC and Power Electronics (26 Papers) C4 - System Technical Performance (25 Papers) C6 - Distribution Systems and Dispersed Generation (23 Papers)

Wednesday 25th August

A2 – Transformers (29 Papers) B2 - Overhead lines (27 Papers) C5 - Electricity Markets & Regulation (22 Papers) D2 - Information Systems and Telecommunication (28 Papers)

Thursday 26th August

A1 - Rotating Electrical Machines (22 Papers) B1 - Insulated Cables (28 Papers) B5 - Protection and Automation (26 Papers) C1 - System Development and Economics (26 Papers)

Friday 27th August

B3 - Substations (26 Papers) C2 - System Operation and Control (26 Papers) C3 - System Environmental Performance (21 Papers) D1 - Materials and Emerging Test Technologies (25 Papers)

Tuesday 24th August

A3 - High Voltage Equipment

This Discussion Session which was very well attended addressed three Preferential

Subjects as follows:

1. Development of HV equipment to cater for increasing system demands – Papers

from China and India the two countries leading the world in the design, construction

and operation of UHV AC and DC transmission system presented complete design

details of the projects now in operation. The former USSR designed circuits for 1200

kV operation but these were operated at 750 kV and Japan has made significant

progress in this field with a transmission line constructed for 1100 kV operation ready

for commissioning at the design voltage in 2015, Detailed design and operational

information was presented on voltage variations, the transient over-voltage specified

for surge arresters together with data on the switching methods employed for

controlling transformers, overhead lines etc.

2. Lifetime management of HV equipment – This subject promoted a number of

contributions recording the failure rates of equipment operating in the voltage range

110 kV to 750 kV. The discussion was centred on whether this was caused by a

change in asset maintenance from TBM to CBM. The value and experience of

diagnostic techniques, on-line systems, economics and safety issues were all

discussed as utilities seek to extend the life of existing assets. Experience and

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knowledge was shared by the Paper presenters and delegates during the discussion

period at this Session.

3. Prospects for introduction of new HV technologies – The Papers presented covered

vacuum circuit breakers (VCB’s), fault current limiters, instrument transformers and

composite hollow insulators. The differences in the choice of switchgear was a key

point discussed as the practice varies from VCB’s in China and Japan to the use of

SF6 switchgear in Europe and the USA. The mechanical reliability of these two types

of switchgear was also questioned. Various issues relating to the design and testing of

fault current limiters and limited operational experience was presented on their

application and operation. The performance of composite hollow insulators was

reported to be satisfactory but at present type-tests fail to specify the mechanical load,

which is regarded as the most critical design feature. At present this type of insulator

has only been available for installation for a relatively short period so as yet there is

no indication on the length of their service life.

B4 - HVDC and Power Electronics:

This Session which attracted 26 Papers was presented as three Preferential Subjects:

1. Developments in HVDC and FACTS technology – The development of 800 kV DC

was the centre of discussion particularly the excessive creepage distances required for

bushings and insulators etc. The contributors to this Session provided considerable

information over a wide range of topics and the experience gained from the new

800kV systems will provide a valuable contribution to establishing new standards.

Hydro-Quebec presented a paper reporting on the operation of the Quebec and New

England multi-terminal dc system that operates for up 50% of the time in multi-

terminal mode. A number of contributors reported similar satisfactory operational

experience reporting on the protection used when a large number of converters are in

circuit.

2. HVDC and FACTS – operating experience and new projects - Examples of

schemes employing FACTS devices to improve system performance were presented

by contributors from France and Brazil. Also an example of the increased power

transfer capability following the installation of a series compensation scheme and an

SVC in Finland was presented. The need for stringent harmonic filtering equipment

was emphasized by a project in Brazil when problems arose due the different

specifications specified by two different system operators. Similar, specifications are

also necessary when the insulation co-ordination and converters are designed and

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supplied by different vendors. Further design features discussed were problems with

indoor converter stations in locations subject to salt pollution and the difficulty

experienced with fire regulations if combustible insulation/fluids are used. These

problems were illustrated by projects in Japan and Spain.

3. HVDC and FACTS project development issues. – The use in HVDC systems of an

earth return and ground electrodes were presented by contributors from Brazil and

India together with audible noise problem from the air-core reactors on the Caboro

Bassa project were among the problem issues raised in this Session. When discussing

the regulatory, licensing, project funding and technical risks, the Madeira system

project was presented as a model, but not an easy example of a multi-owner, multi

funding project.

C4 - System Technical Performance

This Session which discussed 25 Papers in three Preferential Subjects attracted some

150 delegates.

1.EMC/EMF and Power Quality for future networks - Harmonic emissions emanating

from HVDC installations, the measurement of harmonics and harmonic losses

featured in the first part of this session. The sources of new emissions for example,

wind power, distributed generation and compact fluorescent lamps now impact on

power quality measurements The presentations indicated that in the European systems

there has been no significant change in emissions during the last decade, but time was

given to discussing how to handle and evaluate the huge volume data now available

on power quality data collected by the range of monitoring equipment in use.

2. Advances in insulation coordination and lightning knowledge for improved

performance of modern electric power systems. – This subject was considered in three

topics, stresses that influence insulation performances, dielectric and environmental

stresses. There were a variety of contributions relating to the stress issues including a

comparison of helical and straight profile silicone insulators that gave equivalent

pollution performance under identical conditions. This was followed by a discussion

on lightning modelling where more work is required for use when considering UHV

systems.

3. Techniques and Tools for power balancing assessments and risk-based security

assessment. – The emerging tools and techniques that relate to power system analysis

were particularly welcomed by the delegates in the light of the discussions on ‘Smart

Grids’. Many of the existing simulation programs were discussed highlighting both

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their merits and limitations. There appeared to be unanimity amongst the contributors’

that all models should be clearly presented so that the users are aware of all the

limitations. Finally attention was drawn to the increasing application of mathematical

and probabilistic theories for the assessment of power system security, planning and

operation but as yet more research and development is required before they can be

applied in the field.

C6 - Distribution Systems and Dispersed Generation

This Session attracted a large delegate attendance in view of the interest in active

distribution systems. Three Preferential Subjects were selected for discussion as

follows;

1 Planning and Operation – The goals and services provided by distributed energy

resources (DER) were presented together with the benefits in terms of voltage

support, frequency regulation and wind power variation. In addition to examples, it

was also reported that customers willing to support the smart grid initiative had

achieved energy savings of 10%. Work on networks with a large number of connected

distributed generation (DG) sources indicate that reactive voltage control was the

preferred option although the effectiveness is reduced on underground cable

networks. Hence, more research was recommended on the integrated voltage control

of distribution networks.

2. Demand Side Integration – Based on the discussions it can be concluded that the

potential for demand side resources is very significant with the Germany Energy

Association (VDE) suggesting that in Germany that there is 18GW of DSM available

from heating and heat storage. Furthermore the penetration of electric vehicles (EV)

in Germany was estimated to be two million vehicles. Based on the contributions

received which detailed a limited number of demonstration projects of the hundreds

currently in progress, there is a real need to coordinate the results in order to

maximize the benefits of these projects. Advanced metering is set to play an important

role in demand side integration but the discussions highlighted the need for an energy

interface device for homes and small business. Various solutions were presented

including an EPRI solution but standards remain a critical requirement at present.

3. New concepts and technologies for electrification of remote and rural areas. – The

main points on this discussion focused on micro-grids that are regarded as being

particularly suitable to rural areas with weak connections to the grid. For rural

electrification applications low cost technologies developed to extract power from

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high voltage lines were presented. Auxiliary Services Voltage Transformers (ASVT)

offers a solution but this relatively low cost scheme is subject to poor voltage

regulation when remote from the source high voltage lines. The practical steps

required to encourage World Governments to tackle rural development on a

sustainable basis was discussed and reference was made to a number of reports to re-

think the rural development strategies. It was generally accepted that this was a matter

for World Governments together with the international community but identifying the

organization to take the lead on this difficult issue remains an unanswered question.

Wednesday 25th August

A2-Transformers

A total of 29 Papers were selected for this Session and such was the interest in

transformers 55 contributions were received for discussion. Three Preferential

Subjects were again established for this session as follows:

1. Transformer incidents in service. – This subject created great interest with

contributors from Australia, Japan and India reporting on the failures of transformers

and other substation equipment. A number of recommendations were made including

frequent oil changes in on-line tap changers and the replacement of bushings every 20

years to avoid failures. The advantages and disadvantages of the transformer

insulating medium were discussed at length as mineral oil is now being replaced by

the environmentally friendly ester fluids and silicone liquid. But no firm conclusions

on their respective benefits could be drawn from the contributions given by delegates

from the USA, Germany UK, France and Japan.

2. Transformer life – This subject prompted a number of contributions related to the

diagnostic testing and monitoring undertaken to predict the remaining life of a

transformer with valuable contributions from Sweden Canada and Germany.

Examples of the techniques used by utilities in Canada, Japan, and Zambia were

presented some suggesting that service life of the transformer could be beyond 60

years, but huge variations will occur as a result of the transformer loading cycles

while in service.

3. Transformer Modelling – this subject was addressed by a review of the transformer

modelling tools and techniques available with some presentations showing the

comparison between the models and transformers in service. The most interesting

contribution was from Korea where they identified four ‘thermal areas’, of

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transformer engineering that they considered should be open for debate. They were

existing transformer cooling conceptions: cooling pipe-work arrangements, heat

exchangers; plate fin-type designed heat exchangers, suggesting that oil flow, oil flow

rates and temperature distribution need to be determined more accurately. A report

was then presented detailing the design and performance of a plastic oil-flow meter

designed to be positioned within the winding bottom end insulation system.

B2 - 0verhead Lines

This topic always attracts a large number of Papers and Conference delegates and this

year three Preferential Subjects were selected by the Study Committee:

1.Managing the environmental impact of new and existing overhead transmission

lines – This subject dealt with the practical aspects of overhead lines and reports on

new materials. EMF and audible noise dominated the discussion and evidence was

presented on the surface treatment of new conductors that can reduce audible noise.

Delegates received information on the different designs of supporting towers,

different types of structure, namely, wood, steel and concrete and the life-cycle

costs of these alternatives. Compacted tower configurations suitable for urban areas

and a comparison of losses of composite and standard conductors were presented as

this is often used when deciding whether to erect a new line or reconductor the

existing line.

2. Increasing the power capacity of existing overhead lines by conversion of AC to

DC or by increasing voltage levels.- Based on the contributions it appears that he

case for AC to DC line conversion is only economical for circuits longer than 100 –

200km (124 miles) and the care must be taken to limit the circuit outage costs. So

increasing the AC circuit voltage is generally the simplest and economical method

of increasing the circuit load transfer capacity. Reference was also made to the re-

use of foundations and towers bases in lines subject to AC and DC conversions as

the mechanical reliability needs to be much greater in order to be capable of higher

load transfers.

3.Assessment of overall electrical and mechanical availability of overhead lines. -

This subject was addressed by a variety of contributions from many parts of the

world. The non-destructive testing methods used in France and the Russian

Federation were described while in Brazil thermal and mechanical tests are used to

determine the ageing of conductors. Interest was shown in the subject of robots now

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used for the inspection and maintenance of overhead line conductors, and in Brazil a

robot has been developed for the installation of warning devices. Methods to

determine overall circuit reliability were presented with Russia using line length and

its impact on failures, whereas in Brazil, a formula based on line length is used to

determine the circuit reliability.

C5 - Electricity Markets and Regulation

A total of 22 Papers were submitted for this topic that attracted some 200 delegates to

the auditorium. The discussion was planned with the Study Committee selecting three

Preferential Subjects:

1. Challenges of national or state regulations of transmission and system operators in

regional markets. – Organisation and governance in India’s first power exchange

market was just one of a number of contributions. Speakers from Europe, Brazil and

Japan dealt with issues ranging from capacity allocation to balancing markets.

2. Impact of Intermittent Resources or Demand Response on Market Designs: -

Contributions for Ireland, Italy, China and France were among the reports on the

impact of wind generation. All forms of renewable energy sources were presented

based on a number of US studies, while a Paper on the integration of storage

technologies on the New York wholesale electricity market completed the

presentations for this discussion period.

3. Interactions of environmental incentives and markets (e.g. carbon) with electricity

markets: - The key issues linked to CO2 emission trading system in China, the impact

of CO2 reduction targets on the power market applicable to the Italian and French

systems were the key contributions to this short discussion that attracted only four

Papers.

D2 – Information Systems and Telecommunications

This topic was discussed under two Preferential Subjects selected by the Study

Committee as follows: -

1. Practical implementation of IEC 61850 in electric power systems. - For this

discussion 17 Papers were accepted from 15 countries. Examples of the projects

employing the IEC 61850 protocol were presented by authors from a number of

European countries, India, South America and the USA. Further contributions

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followed on the IT protocols used on topics as diverse as Wide Area Monitoring

Systems (WAMS) and Cyber Security.

2. Information and information technology (IT) security for power utilities: - This

topic again created wide-scale international interest indicating the number and variety

of incidents linked to cyber security. Contributions from Brazil presented the use of

merits of IT applications for system emergencies and cyber security, while in Japan

and Croatia action has been taken following cyber security incidents. Similar IT

security problems were reported by contributors from Romania.

Thursday 26th August

A1 – Rotating Electrical Machines

This Discussion attended by some 150 delegates was arranged under two Preferential

Subjects.

1. Developments in Electrical Machine Design and Experience in Service: - Nine

Papers were selected that presented a number of new design innovations and

excitation control systems and the advantages of indirectly hydrogen cooled

generators. Among the topics raised during the open discussion were the

environmental and health issues during plant manufacture and commissioning.

2. Life Management: - The topics accepted for discussion included use of monitoring

and diagnostics, refurbishment, improvement and site experience. Papers presented

were mainly linked to real-time condition monitoring with examples of optical and

vibration monitoring systems in Brazil and reports on continual partial discharge

monitoring and fault detection in rotor windings.

B1 – Insulated Cables

The Study Committee arranged the discussion of the 28 accepted Papers under three

Preferential Subjects

1. Technical challenges that have been overcome in newly installed underground and

submarine cable systems: - This well attended discussion included numerous reports

on the latest major underground and submarine cable projects ranging from NorNed

the longest submarine cable installation in the world to the feasibility studies linked to

the Malta – Italy subsea cable interconnector. Both AC and DC cable projects were

discussed together with the range of compact joints now available for jointing fluid-

filled to extruded cable.

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2. Key factors in current and foreseen development of cable systems: - Among the

topics presented in this period were new innovative methods for laying cables and a

description of the forced cooling system designed to allow the uprating of 400 kV

cable in Vienna. Considerable interest was shown in a report from Japan that shows

the failure rate of their cable systems is lower than the worldwide statistics.

3. State-of the art and trends for cable system testing: - In this discussion period the

Papers covered a variety of topics linked to the on-site commissioning test used on

cable systems, the results of the Very Low Frequency (VLF) program applied by

utilities in the USA plus a report on a new monitoring system for partial discharge

(PD) detection developed for two 220 kV cables in Spain.

B5 – Protection and Automation

For this discussion the Study Committee selected two Preferential Subjects.

1.Protection, control and monitoring for the next decade – This discussion offered the

opportunity of leading manufacturers to present future developments in this field with

contributions from ABB, Areva, Siemens and Toshiba. This subject also attracted

papers from Egypt, Romania, China, Brazil and Argentina. Among the protection

systems presented were the Real-Time Dynamic Monitoring System (RTDMS) used

by the State Grid Corporation in China, thermal overload protection in Argentina,

wide area monitoring (WAM) in Romania and disturbance recording with the IEC

61850 protocol in Egypt.

2. Impact of renewable generation and cogeneration on substation automation and

protection – The majority of Papers discussed in this period were submitted by

manufacturers some with the support of utility contributors. A consortium of

manufacturers from Japan reported on protection systems for distributed generation

and manufacturers in USA and Canada, namely GE Global, GE Digital and

Powertech described a system for the optimal control of microgrid resources.

Cogeneration protection was presented by contributors from Romania while

contributors from Spanish utilities presented system protection systems for networks

with a high concentration of wind power.

C1 – System Development and Economics

This discussion centred on 26 papers which the Study Committee arranged as three

Preferential Subjects.

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1. Solutions for planning power systems for a low carbon energy future. - There was

considerable international interest in this subject judged by the contributions that

came from academia, manufacturers and utilities. Probably the most significant

contribution was the European Wind Integration Study (EWIS) representing a number

of European utilities, supported by the grid integration of offshore wind turbines from

France. The economic and reliability issues were addressed in a paper authored by

General Electric Company.

2. New businesses processes to support/facilitate power system design for a low

carbon energy future. – The impact of wind power on the operation of large

transmission systems was the key issues that were presented by authors from China,

UK and Poland. The market benefits arising from wind energy was discussed in a

Paper from Australia but the only contribution linked to power storage was covered in

a contribution from ETH Zurich.

3. Asset management challenges/strategies (replacement, refurbishment and

maintenance) for a low carbon energy future. – A number of topics were presented in

this session with the large-scale integration of wind power into bulk transmission

systems being presented by utilities from Brazil and France. The contribution to a low

carbon energy future that a reduction in system energy losses offers is now being

studied in depth by the RTE, the TSO in France where 80% of all losses are attributed

to overhead lines and underground cables the remaining 20% being losses associated

with power transformers and substation auxiliaries.

Friday 27th August

B3 – Substations

The Study Committee identified three Preferential Subjects to form the basis of

discussion on substations

1.New techniques/New design of substations:- The average age of substations is

estimated to be some 40 years, hence supply security remain a key issue of the

network operator but this discussion period was dominated by contributions linked to

the equipment developments for 800 kV HVDC and 1200 kV HVAC systems. Two

contributions discussed examples of projects employing Gas Insulated Lines (GIL)

while a consortium of Japanese utilities and manufacturers presented a Paper on the

design of ‘Megacapacity’ underground substations.

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2. Existing substations, new challenges: - A number of different approaches to the

application of new technologies were presented in this period. Again the Japanese

consortium of utilities and manufacturers outlined the technologies used to upgrade

and uprate substations, whereas in Switzerland the different technologies have been

subject to environmental analysis. New asset management strategies have been

introduced in Mexico to extend asset lifetimes while in Russia the maintenance of 110

kV GIS substations is used as an opportunity to upgrade the voltage to 220 kV. A

further contribution presented the steps being taken in India to provide the Mumbai

Megacity with a reliable supply.

3. New secondary system challenges in substations : -The impact of IEC 61850 had a

marked impact on this period with R & D based Papers from a consortium of German

manufacturers and from Korea, an intelligent and compact substation. Contributions

from Scandinavian utilities on the maintenance procedures required for IEC 61850

and the implementation of IEC 61850 on the Java-Bali transmission system in

Indonesia were the highlights of this period.

C2 – System Operation and Control

The 25 Papers submitted for this discussion meeting were allocated into two

Preferential Subjects by the Study Committee:

1. Enhancement of operational reliability:- The majority of the presentations were on

the monitoring and control of the power grid to enhance operational reliability.

Examples of Wide Area Monitoring (WAM) was the subject of contributions from

Korea, and the UK while the Southern Grid Company (SGC) in China employ a Wide

Area Damping control System (WADC). Further applications to improve operational

reliability were outlined in contributions from Russia who use an Automatic

Emergency Control system ( AEC), Dynamic Security Assessment (DSA) in Italy

while France and Belgium have adopted ‘Ampacimon’ to provide the real-time

dynamic ratings for the overhead transmission system.

2. Consistency and coordination of system control and operation: - Contributions to

this period illustrated the efforts being made to improve the coordination between

interconnected TSO’s. Examples were presented on the technical coordination

between TSO’s in Western Europe and also the European ENTSO –E system. Similar

action has been taken by the TSO’s connected to the Nordic System while in Brazil

19

the responsibilities of all the country’s TSO’s as now specified were outlined in the

discussion.

C3 – System Environmental Performance

For this discussion meeting the Study Committee chose two Preferential Subjects.

1. Innovative environmental studies for power transmission corridors: - The majority

of the papers discussed were linked to ways of reducing the impact of overhead

transmission lines. The Environmental Impact Studies (EIS) now forms a key issue in

the right-of way (ROW) negotiations and a number of major utilities reported on

actions taken to minimise environmental damage. In Finland the frequency of ROW

clearance has been extended; in France where the majority of transmission lines are in

woodland stakeholders are more actively involved in decisions, while in Brazil the

(Geographical Information System)GIS is now used in order to select potential routes

for transmission lines. In Norway, tower painting and low reflection insulators are

some of the camouflage innovations being used to reduce the visual impact.

2. External costs accounting of environmental and social impact of power generation

and transmission – The papers discussed were dominated by a number from Brazil but

overall all the contributions stressed the need to include the external costs associated

with the construction of transmission lines in the total project cost. In Brazil

compensation payments amount to 1% of the total cost and in California where

external costs were negligible in 1970 they now average some 5% of the project cost.

Projects. Studies in Italy indicate that in some circumstances the external costs can be

some 1.5M€/annum/km while studies by RTE in France suggest the cost of

environmental protection and local employment can range from 4% to 6% of the total

cost.

D1 - Materials and Emerging Test Techniques

The Study Committee arranged the discussion of the 25 papers under three

Preferential Subjects

1. New materials for improved efficiency and sustainability of AC and DC power

equipment – This period provided delegates with an insight into the research and

studies on new materials for transmission system applications. The need to upgrade

existing transmission lines in Egypt resulted in the utility selecting to use GAP

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(unique construction) or INVAR (unique material) conductors. RTE reported on work

in France on a comparison of the properties and benefits of mineral versus ester

(vegetable oil) insulating oil which revealed no definitive conclusion. Looking ahead

work is in progress in Japan to develop new insulating materials and gases for

advanced gas insulated systems. Manufacturers reported on the properties of

composite insulators that require high quality fillers to ensure that adequate rubber

properties are maintained and research is in progress to evaluate the dielectric material

responses for highly stressed HVDC insulator design.

2. Challenges for testing and diagnostics – As power transformers are the key and

highest capital cost component of a transmission system they proved to be subject of

the majority of contributions in this period. Optical fibre sensors for temperature

monitoring, the merits of off-line and on-line UHF partial discharge monitoring,

furfurals in transformer oil, the use of dissolved gas analysis (DGA) to determine the

oxidation on mineral and ester insulating oils and the UHF techniques formerly

developed for use on gas insulated switchgear now being used on power transformers

were presented. In Mexico, studies on use partial discharge measurements at gas

insulated substations during commissioning and in fault analysis are now being used

as part of the complete range of diagnostic tools. Finally, joint R & D between Union

Fenosa and LCOE in Spain has resulted in the development of a mobile, compact unit

able to perform over-voltage tests on a complete substation i.e. transformer, GIS,

cables and accessories.

3. Endurance of materials especially in harsh electrical and physical environments. -

Two papers were accepted for this period, the first from Egypt presented the

deterioration of fibre reinforced materials caused by chemical and coastal pollution.

The utility who reported transmission lines in close proximity to chemical plants, the

use of fibre reinforced poles and composite insulators have identified that salt

pollution, sulphuric and nitric acids are the main causes of component deterioration

and failure. In Japan, R & D work is in progress to ensure the characteristics and

integrity of polymer insulated materials (cables) is sufficiently robust to comply with

the rigorous standards applicable to installation in the country’s Nuclear Power Plants

Poster Sessions

This year the CIGRÉ Organising Committee arranged six Poster Sessions that were

open to delegates from Tuesday 24th August to Thursday 26th August 2010. This gave

21

delegates the opportunity of a one-to-one discussion with the authors of the Papers

presented in A2, B3, B1, C1, C2, and D1 Discussion Meetings.

Technical Exhibition

The number of applicants for the CIGRÉ 2010 Technical Exhibition at the Palais des

Congrés exceeded the space available so the Exhibition but with 110 Stands

representing 22 countries it was the largest Exhibition ever staged at a CIGRÉ

General Session.

The Exhibition which remained open to all delegates during the five-day Conference

included displays and demonstrations by many of the world’s leading manufacturers

who develop, design and market the latest innovative equipment and technologies

designed to meet the current demands of the power generation and transmission

utilities. This year the manufacturers producing accessories, test equipment and

computer software had the largest number of Stands but all the world’s leading

manufactures were present displaying transformers, switchgear, overhead line

components and UHV and EHV cable systems.

The exhibitors presented the full range of equipment developed for smart grid

applications, sustainable energy solutions and details of the plant and equipment

installed on the most recently commissioned UHV and EHV transmission system

interconnectors in the world. So the Exhibition continues to be recognised as the

showcase that maintains and strengthens the vitally important links between research

institutions, manufacturers, end-users and the industry’s key decision and policy

makers. Hence, every CIGRÉ General Session attracts members and visitors from

around the world. This ensures that the interests of all sectors of the industry is

represented at this Conference.

(The Schedule of Exhibitors is attached to this Report)

CIGRÉ’s Perspective for the Future

Since CIGRÉ was founded in France in 1921, the objectives of this international

electricity organisation have remained unchanged but with the passage of time

changes have been made to respond to the growth and technical developments within

electricity utilities.

22

Currently on an international basis, the industry is faced with ever-increasing

investment programmes to supplement existing energy supplies and cater for the

continual growth in demand. Although CIGRÉ’s international forum now almost a

90-year reputation for developing technologies and establishing the industry’s

standards, the Technical Committee are now establishing the strategic directions for

the next decade. As a result of considering the factors that will shape the future of the

electricity industry four major strategic directions have been identified: -

1. The electrical power system of the future

2. Making the best use of the existing system

3. Focus on the environment and sustainability, and

4. Interactive communication and information.

CIGRE’s well-structured organisation has an increasing membership in over 89

countries that continues to attract the world experts who look forward to sharing their

diverse range of technical expertise with all their fellow professionals attending

CIGRÉ 2010.

(For full details on how to become a member of CIGRÉ and for information on

CIGRÉ’s on-going programme of activities, please visit www.cigre.org)

23

Schedule of Exhibitors

3M United States

www.3M.com/ACCR

ABB Ltd Switzerland www.abb.com ALROC SAS France www.alroc.fr AMA-SYSTEMS GMBH Germany www.ama-systems.com

American Superconductor – AMSC United States www.amsc.com

AREVA T&D France www.areva-td.com ARKEMA France France www.arkema.com BAUR Pruef- und Messtechnik GmbH Austria www.baur.at BCP Busarello + Cott + Partner AG Switzerland www.neplan.ch BPL Global France www.bplglobal.net Brugg Kabel AG Switzerland www.bruggcables.com CableCURE Germany www.cablecure.de CESI S.p.A. Italy www.cesi.it CIRED Belgium www.cired.net Coil Innovation GmbH Austria www.coilinnovation.at

Cooper Power Systems United States www.cooperpower.com

CYME International T&D Inc. (Cooper Power Systems) Canada www.cyme.com DALEKOVOD Croatia www.dalekovod.com DIgSILENT GmbH Germany www.digsilent.de DILO Armaturen und Anlagen GmbH Germany www.dilo-gmbh.de Doble Engineering Company Norway www.doble.com Dow Wire & Cable Switzerland www.dowwireandcable.com Dynamic Ratings Australia www.dynamicratings.com Efacec Portugal www.efacec.pt Electricité de France CIST France www.edf.com ELECTROTECNICA ARTECHE HERMANOS S.A. Spain WWW.ARTECHE.COM

Ellis Patents United Kingdom www.ellispatents.co.uk

Energy Support GmbH Germany www.energy-support.de FISO TECHNOLOGIES INC. Canada www.fiso.com FUGRO GEOID SAS France www.fugro.com

GE Energy United States www.itsyoursmartgrid.com

GLOBAL INSULATOR GROUP LTD. Russia www.gig-group.com Haefely Test AG Switzerland www.haefely.com Hapam bv Netherlands www.hapam.nl

High Voltage Inc. United States www.hvinc.com

HSP Hochpannungsgeräte GmbH Germany www.hspkoeln.de

IEEE Power & Energy Society United States www.ieee-pes.org

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Ingeteam Transmission & Distribution, S.A. Spain www.ingeteamtd.com Iris Power LP Canada www.irispower.com ISA Europa Sarl France www.isatest.com JAPAN AE POWER SYSTEMS CORPORATION Japan www.jaeps.com JST transformateurs France www.jst-transformers.com KALKI Communication Technologies Limited India www.kalkitech.com

KEMA The Netherlands http://www.kema.com/events/Default.aspx

KoCoS Messtechnik AG Germany www.kocos.com KONCAR Croatia www.koncar.hr Lamifil Belgium www.lamifil.be Lapp Insulators GmbH Germany www.lappinsulators.de LIOS Technology GmbH Germany www.lios-tech.com Lumpi-Berndorf Draht-und Seilwerk GmbH Austria www.lumpi-berndorf.at Manitoba HVDC Research Centre Canada www.pscad.com Maschinenfabrik Reinhausen GmbH Germany www.reinhausen.com Maxwell Technologies SA Switzerland www.maxwell.com MEGGER France www.megger.com METAL DEPLOYE RESISTOR France www.mdresistor.com mica informationstechnologie gmbh Austria www.ohtlgrid.com

Mitsubishi Electric Europe B.V. United Kingdom http://global.mitsubishielectric.com/

Morgan Schaffer Inc. Canada www.morganschaffer.com Mosdorfer GmbH Austria www.mosdorfer.com MTE Meter Test Equipment AG Switzerland www.mte.ch Nanjing Nari-Relays Electric Co., Ltd P.R.China www.nari-relays.com

Narec United Kingdom www.narec.co.uk

National Electric Coil United States www.highvoltagecoils.com

Neoptix Fiber Optic Sensors, Inc. Canada www.neoptix.com NEXANS FRANCE France www.nexans.com nkt cables GmbH Germany www.nktcables.de OMICRON electronics GmbH Austria www.omicron.at Opal-RT Technologies Inc. Canada www.opal-rt.com Opsens Canada www.opsens.com OPTEN Russia www.optensolutions.com P.M.V. SYSTEMS B.V./DECISION SUPPORT ASSOCIATES Netherlands www.decsa.nl

Parsons Brinckerhoff United Kingdom www.pbworld.com/power

PFISTERER SAS France www.pfisterer.fr

PHENIX TECHNOLOGIES INC United States www.phenixtech.com

Power Diagnostix Systems GmbH Germany www.pdix.com

Power Line Systems Inc United States www.powline.com

Protecta Hungary www.protecta.hu PRYSMIAN CABLES & SYSTEMS Italy www.PRYSMIAN.COM

Psymetrix Limited United Kingdom www.psymetrix.com

Qualitrol Corporation United www.qualitrolcorp.com

25

Kingdom

Quintas & Quintas, Condutores Eléctricos, S.A. Portugal www.quintascondutores.pt RESEARCH&DEVELOPMENT&TESTING NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING - ICMET Craiova ROMANIA www.icmet.ro RTDS Technologies Inc. Canada www.rtds.com RTE - Réseau de Transport d'Electricité France www.rte-france.com RuggedCom Inc. Canada www.ruggedcom.com Schniewindt GmbH & Co. KG Germany www.schniewindt.de Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories Netherlands www.selinc.com SDCEM France www.sdcem.com SebaKMT Germany www.sebakmt.com SecuControl Produktions GmbH Germany www.secucontrol.com Sediver S.A. France www.seves.com SELTA SPA Italy www.selta.it SERGI France France www.sergi-france.com

SGB- Smit Group The Netherlands www.smittransformers.com

Siemens AG Germany www.siemens.com/energy Silec Cable France www.sileccable.com SOLVAY FLUOR GMBH Germany www.solvay-fluor.com Statnett SF Norway www.statnett.no STRI AB Sweden www.stri.se TAURUS POWERTRONICS PVT LTD India www.tauruspowertronics.com TOSHIBA Japan http://www3.toshiba.co.jp/power/index3.htm

Transmission & Distribution World Magazine United States www.tdworld.com

Trench France SAS France www.trenchgroup.com TYCO ELECTRONICS SIMEL S.A.S. France www.energy.tycoelectronics.com

UCA International Users Group United States www.ucaiug.org

Von Roll Transformers Ltd Switzerland www.vonroll.com Wacker Chemie AG Germany www.wacker.com WIKA Alexander Wiegand SE & Co. KG Germany www.wika.de ZENSOL AUTOMATION INC. Canada www.zensol.com ZIV APLICACIONES y TECNOLOGIA, S.L. Spain www.ziv.es

ooOOoo

Final Edit from Gerry George, International Editor

26th October 2010