Telangana drafts blueprint for smart grid integration

The Telangana State Electricity Regulatory Commission (TSERC) has released smart grid regulations to improve the efficiency of its power generation, transmission and distribution (T&D) networks. The scope of the regulation includes the development and implementation of smart grid programmes, measuring their cost-effectiveness, and monitoring and reporting on their progress. As per the regulations, every T&D licensee is required to establish a smart grid cell within three months of the release of the current notification. The purpose of the smart grid cell will be to carry out baseline studies, build a database, formulate smart grid programmes, design and develop smart grid projects, acquire the necessary approvals and implement programmes. T&D agencies in each area of the state must submit an integrated multi-year smart grid plan, a multi-year tariff petition and an annual revenue requirement petition. The TSERC also made provisions for the formation of an R&D team. T&D licensees are also expected to identify net incremental costs in various stages of development, establish key performance indicators to evaluate the functioning of the grid and reserve 1 per cent of the project cost for consumer awareness and capacity building.