Power system operation and Control

Lectures prepared by

Prof. S. Shahnawaz Ahmed

Topics that would be covered:

Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA)
State Estimation
Unit Commitment
Electricity Market
Automatic Generation Control
Optimal Power Flow
Security

Objectives of the course:

1.To understand the evolution from a traditional power system to
electricity market and then to smart grid.
2.To be familiar with the common control features in any power
system.
3.To understand the way various control activities are correlated .

Background
Availability of commercially viable and quality electrical energy in a bulk
quantum is the basic need for the survival and evolution of the modern civilization.
This is because electrical energy is the most convenient one for generation,
transmission, distribution, consumption, storage and control.
The phrase quality refers to a target that electricity be delivered to the end users
without exceeding the allowed limits in voltage deviation, frequency drift, wave
shape distortion (i.e. deviation from pure sine wave) and outage. Typical values of
these limits are respectively set at 5%, 1%, 5% and only 32 seconds/year (i.e.
99.9999% availability) in the context of todays world.
Power System: This is a system where a plethora of generation (G), transmission
(T), distribution (D) and utilization (i.e. consumption and storage) apparatus, and
measurement, control, protection and monitoring devices are so interconnected
that it becomes possible to bring power from distant and dispersed generation
units with fuel diversity (fossil fuel, nuclear, hydro, renewable) and deliver it in a
bulk quantum with quality and economy to the consumers who use appliances of
diverse nature ranging from low tech to high tech.
The planning, design and operation of a power system requires a knowledge of its
main control functions .

Generators shown without the unit

transformers (i.e. the transformer that steps
up 11 or 15 kV to 132 or 230 kV)
Tie transformer
(autotransformer) between
132 kV and 230 kV buses

Transformers that step

down 132 kV to 33 kV
for connection to load
feeders

Fig.: Single Line Diagram of 200-bus grid of Bangladesh Power System (BPS) as of 2012

Since the inception in the late nineteenth century (around the year 1880)
power systems have been traditionally built in a vertically integrated form
comprising generation, transmission and distribution facilities owned and
operated by the same entity.
Since the late twentieth century (around 1996) a conceptual wave termed
restructuring/deregulation/unbundling swept across the world starting from
California of USA. This concept was the brainchild of primarily the economists.
This resulted in separate owners and operators for the three sectors to pave the
way for competition in the generation sector (i.e. many generation entities) and
creation of electricity market from where the distribution agencies will buy
electricity at spot price and/or under long term bilateral contracts.
Needless to say , the operation and control objectives and schemes for a
restructured power system differs to some extent from those for a vertically
integrated one because of the differences in the interests of the owners of the
three primary sectors (G, T, D).

Since the early twenty first century (around 2007), a new vision termed
smart grid was floated mainly by the public bodies and regulators of
electricity utilities in the North America against the backdrop of several
incidents of massive blackouts that occurred in USA and Europe in the years
2003 and 2004.
The smart grid vision is still in the stage of evolution; however, it stems from
an idea that the large power grids interconnecting bulk and centralized
power plants across the world are aging and hence a potential solution
could be to make the system self-healing in the event of blackouts through
embedding (i) distributed small-scale generation resources including
renewable sources, (ii) plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (that use high power
density rechargeable alkaline batteries) and (iii) smart appliances (selfresponsive to system condition) at the consumer end all of which can be
communicated by the grid control centre utilizing the available distributed
communication media such as cell phone network, internet, broadband
wireless systems such as WiMAX, fiber optic networks, and power line
carriers (PLC).
In brief DERs (Distributed Energy Resources including storage devices), two
way communication and DR (Demand Response) are the conspicuous features
of a smart grid.

http://sensorweb.cs.gsu.edu/?q=EnergyWeb

(Real-time price signal)

Vision for a smart grid city

Carbon Capture and Storage

Integrated gasification combined cycle

Why power system control is so important?

The answer is very simple.
People are more demanding regarding electricity compared to other
services.
It is the peoples expectation that whenever they switch on a device
it should get supply.
They are not ready to hear electricity network is busy
unlike the patience they show to entertain a message: Telephone/
cell phone network is now busy.

Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA)

For subsequent materials assistance taken from various sources as follows.
1.Power Eng. Handbook, 2001, CRC Press, NY, 2001
2. Jan Machowski, Janusz W. Bialek and James R. Bumby: POWER SYSTEM
DYNAMICS Stability and Control, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, UK, 2008.
3. Antonio Gomez-Expostio, Antonio J. Conejo and Claudio Canizares,
Electric Energy Systems Analysis and Operation, CRC Presss, New York, 2009.
4. S. Shahnawaz Ahmed: Power System Control, Proceedings of short course
Recent Trends in Power System Operation organized for the professionals in the
academic/industrial sectors by the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, UTM
at Johor Bahru, Malaysia, 17-19 September 2001, pp. 2-1 to 2-16.
5. A.J.Wood, B.F. Wollenberg and Gerald B. Sheble, Power Generation, Operation
and Control, John Wiley & Sons, 3rd Edition, 2013.
6. W.A.Elmore, Pilot Protective Relaying, ABB-Marcel Dekker Inc., 2000.
7. Janaka Ekanayake, Kithsiri Liyanage, Jianzhong Wu, Akihiko Yokoyama and Nick
Jenkins, Smart Grid: Technology and Applications, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., UK,
First Edition, 2012. (a few diagrams from Chapter 8)

Overview of Operation and Control

Source: 1.Power Eng. Handbook, 2001, CRC Press, NY, 2001

Source 2:Jan Machowski, Janusz W. Bialek and James R. Bumby:

POWER SYSTEM DYNAMICS Stability and Control, John Wiley &
Sons, Ltd, UK, 2008.

Source:3. Antonio Gomez-Expostio, Antonio J. Conejo and Claudio Canizares,

Electric Energy Systems Analysis and Operation, CRC Presss, New York, 2009.

in regional or national control centre server

in substations, power stations

Optimal power flow: dispatches

generators to minimize generation cost
taking into account line loss, voltage and
line flow limits

State estimation: cleans up acquired data

from random noise and gross errors

AGC: secondary control of frequency

from area (regional) control centre taking
into account load change, tie line flows and
generation dispatches
Source:1

Most of the applications are executed in real time i.e.

require repetition at few seconds to few minutes,
using on-line data.

Basics of typical Power system control:

First load is forecasted for next 24 hours
then it is decided which generation units be
committed in each interval or an hour
and how much power should economically
be dispatched from each of the committed
units.
The decision goes to what is known as
Automatic Generation Control (AGC) that
maintains the frequency at the desired value.
If needed a security analysis is done in
advance to avert the adverse impacts of
probable severe contingencies. This requires
altering the current operating condition of a
system based on the decisions obtained by
running another tool Optimal Power Flow
giving priority to security rather than to
economy.

Forecasting the demand

Generators Control for frequency and Voltage

Source 2

Source: 3

In a power system with increase in demand the frequency and voltage

both decreases and vice versa.
The frequency can be restored partially by the primary (local)
action of generator-turbine governor (i.e. local control by each unit
or plant)
while complete return to the normal value is possible by the
secondary control (e.g. AGC) exercised by the Area Control Centre.
If necessary other secondary actions such as real power balancing,
load shedding are also exercised by the area or regional control
centres.
In a large interconnected system tertiary control (if needed) is
exercised by the National Load Dispatch Center that redetermines
the reference values of power in individual generating units to the
values calculated by optimal dispatch in such a way that the overall
demand is satisfied together with the schedule of power
interchanges.

The voltage can be restored by the primary or local

control from AVR of each generation unit and if
necessary by transformer tap changing, capacitor
switching at substations. However, secondary control
is not always necessary but if needed secondary
control such as
coordinated reactive power
dispatching, load shedding etc. is exercised from area
control centres.

Basic structure of SCADA

Various communication links used in SCADA

Source: Electric Power Distribution

System Engineering by Turan Gnen

Combination of radial (star) and

multi-point (party line) master-RTU
network

Hierarchical control of power system

A typical layout of SCADA control centre

So many transducers needed to send signals to RTU

RTU

IED

PMU

The time error of 1 s corresponds to the

angle error of 360/20 103 = 0.018, that is
0.005%. Such an error is small enough from the
point of view of phasor measurement.

WAMPC: Wide Area Monitoring, Protection and Control system is another advanced
variant of EMS that uses only PMUs .

Data base
Data
base
incorporates
comprehensive
information about the system. The information can
broadly be classified into three groups such as:
i) on- line data from the RTUs;
ii) fixed data entered through man-machine
interface;
iii)output of state estimator and other application
programs.

State Estimator
The raw telemetered data received from the RTUs is mainly corrupted by two
types of errors- random measurement noise and gross error i.e. bad data.
The first type of error mainly results from current and potential transformer errors,
transducer (meter) inaccuracies, analog to digital conversion, noise in
communication channels or interference noise.
Gross error mainly results from faults or failures in metering and communication
system.
State estimator cleans up the raw data using a redundant set of on-line
measurements through a statistical criterion.

Security : monitor, analyze contingencies and

take SCOPF based actions

Typical classification of power

system security related states

Load Forecasting
Load forecasting is the prediction of future
electricity demand by using some statistical
techniques to adjust past demands to present
weather conditions and other anticipated events.
Depending upon system dynamics e.g. change in
demanded MW/minute, short term forecasting takes
place usually once a day or every hour or few hours to
develop an operating schedule.

Unit Commitment
Unit commitment is a procedure to decide which of the
available generators should start up or shut down usually
over a time period of 24 hours in such a manner that the
forecasted demand is met with a spinning reserve which
would satisfy the requirements of both the security as well as
the optimum saving in fuel cost.

Economic Dispatch
Economic dispatch function determines the best allocation
of generation requirements among the committed generating
units so that the total cost of supplying the energy to meet
the demand within the constraints imposed by security
considerations is minimized.

Automatic Generation Control

AGC is a closed loop control system for implementing the
decisions of economic dispatch on each generating unit while
achieving the following objectives.
maintain system frequency;
adjust generation from the base-point economic allocation in
response to small-scale changes in demand;
control tie line power flow to meet interchange schedule in case
the power system is interconnected with the another or the
system comprises two or more interconnected areas.

Underlying logics of an
AGC scheme

Use of SCADA in generation control

NOTE

The prime requirement for ensuring reliability, quality and

affordability of the electricity supply either in a regulated or a
deregulated or a smart grid environment, is an on-line and realtime control system which makes large scale use of emerging IT
and communication technologies.
However, the software and hardware cost proportion in this is
approximately 60:40. Development of the customized software
for a power system control centre requires about 20 man-years
programming effort.
This necessitates involvement of a strong team of experts with
in-depth knowledge in power system dynamics and modeling,
and a few experts to assist them in computer programming.

POWER SYSTEM CONTROL

S. Shahnawaz Ahmed
Professor, Dept. of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Engineering
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology
ssahmed@eee.buet.ac.bd; sahmed90@hotmail.com
1. Introduction
The most convenient one among various forms of energy, electricity is the driving force behind all
types of human activities, developments and researches in other areas of technologies. In brief, it is
the electricity that gives birth to other technologies. Every year the demand for it rises by about 10%.
Use of per capita consumption or generation of electrical energy as a yardstick for assessing a
countrys socio-economic condition just reminds us of the indispensability of electricity.
The system which supplies the invaluable electrical energy, popularly termed power system,
originated in the late nineteenth century in a primitive form of an isolated tiny generator serving
few tungsten lamps just at its terminal. Then it evolved through various stages to become this early
twenty-first centurys the largest man made complex engineering project which comprises
innumerable generators varying in size and characteristics from few kilowatt renewable source units
to several hundred megawatt fossil fuel/hydro/nuclear units. These units are connected through stepup substations to a transnational network termed grid formed by tens of thousand kilometres of
132 kV to 765 kV HVAC and 800 kV HVDC transmission lines within a country or interconnecting
a number of neigbouring countries. Through several layers of step-down substations and a mesh of
distribution lines/cables, the grid feeds to millions of end users belonging to various categories such
as residential, commercial, industrial, public amenities, health, transportation, banking, telecom and
IT sectors, and even space craft control centres. This diverse array of consumers have a wide
spectrum of loads ranging from as simple as a heating coil to as sophisticated as digital chip
controlled smart appliances. Consequently todays power systems are facing much more stringent
requirements and challenges than ever before regarding the major conflicting criteria of reliability,
quality, economy and environmental compatibility. A criterion of 99.9% reliability i.e. 8.76 hours
of power loss per year, considered to be enough a decade ago, is now going to be substituted by a
criterion of 99.9999% i.e. only 32 seconds of power loss per year.

2.Conceptual Model of Real-time Control

The basic objective of any power system control, be it in an analog or a digital way, is to match
continuously the consumers demand with generation economically and without exceeding the
allowed deviations in voltage and frequency. This holds good for a vertically integrated or a
deregulated or a smart grid system.
A central control entity called National Load Despatch Centre makes usually one day ahead (short
term) forecast of the hourly demand over the next day. Then it decides which generation units /
plants be committed and how much share each be allocated corresponding to different parts of the
forecasted load profile so that consumers demand can be met economically while maintaining the
system secure. However, provisions are always kept to adapt the decisions even several minutes
ahead to accommodate any real-time deviation likely to occur in the forecast made. Five major steps
termed application functions involved in the process of forecasting to decision implementation
are respectively SLF (Short term Load Forecasting), UC (Unit Commitment), ELD (Economic Load

Dispatch), SC (Security Control) and AGC (Automatic Generation Control). While the first two are
performed at an interval of several minutes to one day the latter three are done at an interval of few
seconds to several minutes.
To implement the abovementioned real-time control strategy, a massive volume and a variety of
on-line data are transmitted to the master station or control centre from the remote stations i.e.
individual plants and substations in the system, through what is known as SCADA (Supervisory
Control and Data Acquisition). These data are used in a plethora of analyses pertaining to various
functions including the above. The decisions are sent back to the concerned remote sites where again
SCADA implements the same and then sends confirmation back to the control centre. Figure 1
shows a conceptual model of the real-time control scheme what is known as the Energy Management
System (EMS) combining SCADA and application functions.
While frequency deviation is intimately related to the control of mismatch between demand and real
power generation, voltage control needs some additional steps known as VAR management which
includes generator excitation control, local VAR injection, transformer tap changing etc. The
corresponding devices (electromechanical or FACTS) are also interfaced to SCADA so that their
settings can be adjusted under a central command.
Apart from monitoring/metering the data and implementing the decisions related to real and
reactive power control, the SCADA can also integrate in it digital relaying for various types of
system protection. Even, the SCADA associated with a Distribution network Management System
(DMS) can be extended to consumers premises for remote meter reading and implementing DSM
(Demand side Management) actions i.e. to encourage the consumers to change their demand pattern
depending upon the supply side constraints.

Figure 1 Basic model of EMS

3. Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition System (SCADA)

A basic SCADA system has a typical architecture shown in Figure 2. It comprises a number of
RTUs at various power stations/substations, communication network, a master station at the control
centre, and a man-machine interface.

Figure 2 Basic structure of SCADA

The analog quantities to be measured in a power system are too many covering non electrical
quantities like pressure, temperature, flow rate, speed etc. at power stations and electrical quantities
like current, voltage, active and reactive power, frequency, transformer tap position etc. at power
stations as well as substations. Through suitable transducers (for non-electrical quantities), CT, PTs,
analog filters and rectifiers these are converted into equivalent analogous dc signals in milliamps
range, fed into analog input module of RTUs and then converted into digital form.
Also there are digital quantities like CB and isolator position (OPEN or CLOSED contact status)
which are converted into pulses using suitable opto-electronic (e.g. opto-coupler) circuits. The
energy reading of conventional watt-hour meters are also converted in series of pulses by placing an
LED under the hole of the meters rotating disk. The pulse count between two successive scan
represents the energy consumed over the elapsed time period. All the pulse inputs are fed into digital
input module of the RTUs.
The acquired data are processed to some extent (e.g. checking for violation of operational limits,
keeping records or sequence of events) by the built-in microprocessors of RTUs and stored in data
base. Only the exceptional changes or limit exceeding data are transferred from the RTU database to
the master station or control centres Remote Communication Server (RCS) on periodic scanning
(termed polling) of RTUs via a variety of communication channels shown in Figure 3. The Modems
(Modulator-demodulator) are needed for transmitting and receiving digital information without
distortion over any distances exceeding few thousand feet.

Figure 3 Various communication links used in SCADA

The RTUs are connected to the master station through communication links in a fashion what is
known as combination of hub (star or radial) and party line. This enables speedy and simultaneous
communication with various clusters of RTUs without hampering real time value of the data,
optimization of the available communication channel and of the computational power of the master
RTU. Figure 4 shows a typical scheme for interconnection of master station and RTUs. The SCADA
system may have multiple layer of hierarchy with one or more master stations in each level sharing
or coordinating the complex computational and decision making tasks in respective command area.
In the hierarchical scheme the RTUs are only at the bottom most level. Figure 5 shows a typical
configuration of hierarchy.
The master station is in fact a LAN connected assembly of more than one servers and a number of
terminals housed in the control centre. Figure 6 shows an overview of a typical control centre for the
SCADA system. Workstations with multi/parallel processors are presently used as servers while
advanced processor based PCs are used as terminals. PCs at distant locations may also act as
terminals to the control centre servers through a WAN. Each server is assigned specific task.
However, there is provision for back up servers for reliability reasons. Authorized persons can only
access all or selected servers / other terminals from any point of the LAN system through passwords.

Figure 4 Combination of radial (star) and multi-point (party line) master-RTU network

Figure 5 Hierarchical control of power system

Figure 6 A typical layout of SCADA control centre

The data coming from RTU is stored in master station database and can be accessed by various
servers and terminals. Power system application functions are assigned with one of the servers or
distributed among more than one server. To allow view-at-a-glance a control centre is equipped
with a Mimic Board (in the form of a large wall map containing the single line diagram of the whole
power system) or an array of multimedia projector continually updating the SLD. The board or
multimedia screen is digitally updated showing violations of various operational data, CB status etc.
in the form of flashing indication using multicolours accompanied by audible alarm which ceases
when the operator acknowledges the indicated changes. Also operators are provided with software
assistance for an easy interpretation of huge alarms and data overloads. The decisions and output of
executing the application software are transmitted from the master station to the concerned RTUs
just in a manner opposite to that of receiving data from RTUs.

Figure 7 Connection of relay and transducers which are interfaced with a RTU
IED: A more recent development in SCADA system is use of IEDs (Intelligent Electronic Devices)
instead of RTUs. While RTU needs transducers for acquiring various data and got limited
computational power, IED is a transducer less data capturing device with more processing and

decision making power. For monitoring the electrical quantities, it simply receives a voltage and
current signal (waves) from PT and CT at each connection point and then computes all the relevant
data including energy, frequency and even phase angle. This enables the same IED to integrate
monitoring, metering, control and protection functions. Figure 7 shows the way the relay, CB, and
various transducers are connected in a power system. The transducer outputs are communicated to
the RTU and may also be taken to meters. Figure 8 shows how an IED is typically interfaced with a
power system.

Figure 8 Direct interfacing between power system and an IED

PMU: Another breakthrough just surfacing out is use of Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites
in time synchronization among various IEDs at different locations of a power system. Time
synchronization ensures that each IED captures the signals (waves) at the same instant of time so that
the relative phase angles among different bus voltages can be computed with unimaginably high
accuracy as needed specially for digital protection and relaying. These are termed PMU( Phasor
Measurement Unit). The time error will be a maximum of 1 microsecond i.e. the computed phase
angles may vary by only 0.018 from the actual ones. Fig. 8a shows the conceptual design of a
PMU.
Below is an excerpt from Ref. [1] on how PMU operates.
Voltages and currents for which phasors are to be determined are measured, using current and
voltage transformers, as three-phase analogue signals and delivered to the PMU. Each analogue
signal is filtered using an anti-aliasing filter and sent to an analoguedigital converter (A/C). Here
the signal is sampled i.e. converted into digital samples. The sampler impulses are generated by an
oscillator operating with the GPS receiver in the phase-locked loop system. Consequent data samples
are sent to a microprocessor together with their time stamps. The microprocessor sends to its
memory the sequence of N subsequent data samples corresponding to a whole AC period. The
samples are then used to calculate the orthogonal components of each phasor using the discrete
Fourier transform (DFT):

The advantage of this measurement algorithm is that, apart from calculating the orthogonal
components of a phasor, it also filters both components using two orthogonal filters based on sine
and cosine functions. Consequently the calculated orthogonal components of the phasor are those of
the first (fundamental) harmonic. The higher harmonics and the DC component are washed out.

Figure 8a: Functional diagram of a PMU

Protocol: The protocols used in RTU/IED/PMU - master communication is of wide variety
depending upon the requirement of simplicity, reliability and speed. Sometimes there may be
compatibility problem if the RTUs/IEDs do not belong to the same vendor. However, many
standardization organizations are currently attempting to promulgate unique and standard protocols
(also termed open communication or interoperability or open architecture) such as TCP/IP (Transfer
Control Protocol/Internet Protocol), Modbus, IEC 62056, IEC 61850 in power industry SCADA all
over the world. Protocol means an agreed-upon format for transmitting data between two devices.
This format mainly determines type of error checking, data compression method, and indication of
the finishing points of data transmission and reception respectively by sending and receiving devices.

4. EMS Application Functions

The EMS comprises a number of functions which are mostly interrelated and contribute directly or
indirectly towards a secure and economic operation of the system. The main components of an EMS
concerned with real time operation of a power system are outlined as follows.
Some of the components will also be discussed separately under the lecture plan.

4.1 Data base

Data base incorporates comprehensive information about the system. The information can broadly
be classified into three groups such as:
i) on- line data from the RTUs;
ii) fixed data entered through man-machine interface;
iii)output of state estimator and other application programs.
4.2 State Estimator
The raw telemetered data received from the RTUs is mainly corrupted by two types of errorsrandom measurement noise and gross error i.e. bad data. The first type of error mainly results from

current and potential transformer errors, transducer (meter) inaccuracies, analog to digital
conversion, noise in communication channels or interference noise. Gross error mainly results from
faults or failures in metering and communication system. State estimator is a computer program
which uses a statistical criterion for systematically processing a redundant set of raw telemetered
measurements with a view to minimizing the effects of errors present in those. The outcome of state
estimation is a consistent and reliable estimate of a power systems current operating state which is
required by other application functions.
4.3 Load Forecasting
Load forecasting is the prediction of future electricity demand by using some statistical techniques
to adjust past demands to present weather conditions and other anticipated events. Depending upon
system dynamics e.g. change in demanded MW/minute, short term forecasting takes place usually
once a day or every hour or few hours to develop an operating schedule.
4.4 Security Control
Security control can be defined as a complex decision making process to initiate correct control
actions for the maintenance of electric power services under all conditions of operation. The power
system operation can be characterised by three sets of constraints, namely operating, load and
security constraints. Mainly the operational limits on system variables and apparatus, for instance
voltage limit, generator loading limit, transmission line thermal limit, tap position limit and so on
constitute the operating constraints. The load constraints mainly refer to customers total power
demand. The security constraints are mainly the minimum reserve margin in generation and
transmission.
The basic conditions of power system operation can be categorized into four states depending upon
the fulfilment or violation of the constraints. These are normal, alert, emergency and restorative. A
system is in the normal state when all the constraints are met such that the occurrence of any credible
but unforeseen disturbances (e.g. loss of line/generator/transformer/load) will not lead the power
system to the emergency state. In emergency state the operating and security constraints are violated
and the load constraints are not necessarily satisfied. A system in normal state can go to alert state
when any of the security constraints are violated. If a sufficiently severe disturbance takes place
before control action can be taken, the system in the alert state enters the emergency state or its
extreme version i.e. blackout state. The restorative state is associated with the period in which
actions (ranging from fast valving, dynamic braking, etc. to load shedding, islanding,
resynchronization etc.) are taken to bring the system from the emergency to the normal state. Figure
9 shows the four states of power system operation.
Basic to the security control of a power system are three functions, namely
1) security monitoring;
2) security analysis;
3) security enhancement
The security monitoring function checks whether the systems present state satisfies the load and
operating constraints. If so, the ability of the system to undergo a disturbance selected from a
predetermined list is tested in advance by the function security or contingency analysis. The two
well-known tools viz. load flow analysis and transient stability analysis are respectively applied for
static (steady state) and dynamic security assessment. If it is found by security analysis that at least
one contingency may bring the system into the emergency state, security enhancement measures
(such as generation rescheduling, line switching, VAR injection etc.) decided through security

constrained optimal power flow (SCOPF) are adopted and if necessary, the systems present
operating condition is altered before the contingency actually occurs.

Figure 9 Typical classification of power system security related states

4.5 Unit Commitment
Unit commitment is a procedure to decide which of the available generators should start up or shut
down usually over a time period of 24 hours in such a manner that the forecasted demand is met with
a spinning reserve which would satisfy the requirements of both the security as well as the optimum
saving in fuel cost.

4.6 Economic Dispatch

Economic dispatch function determines the best allocation of generation requirements among the
committed generating units so that the total cost of supplying the energy to meet the demand within
the constraints imposed by security considerations is minimised.
4.7 Automatic Generation Control
AGC is a closed loop control system for implementing the decisions of economic dispatch on each
generating unit while achieving the following objectives.

1) maintain system frequency;

2) adjust generation from the base-point economic allocation in response to small-scale changes in
demand;
3) control tie line power flow to meet interchange schedule in case the power system is
interconnected with the another or the system comprises two or more interconnected areas.
The AGC action is suspended during the emergency state of a power system while reinstated on
return of the normalcy. Figures 10 and 11 show respectively an overview of AGC and a basic
generation control loop based on SCADA.

Figure 10 Underlying logics of an AGC scheme

Figure 11 Use of SCADA in generation control

\

5. Control in Deregulated Power System

In a vertically integrated typical system both generation and transmission entities belong to the same
owner while the distribution side is either owned by the same party or tied to it under a power
purchase agreement. In a deregulated system all these are separate entities.
In a deregulated system the transmission asset is at the command of an ISO (Independent System
Operator) or a RTO (Regional Transmission Organisation). The ISO does the load forecasting and
initiates usually at 12 or 24 hours ahead a real-time bidding (which requires computer
communication among the participants) for each period of a time horizon. In this bidding the
intending generation companies (GenCos) and distribution companies (DisCos) respectively quote
their sales and buy volume (MW) against corresponding rates ($/MWh). The ISO applies a
mathematical model to the acceptable bids so that a marginal rate of purchasing electricity termed
market clearing price (MCP in $/MWh) evolves out of that. The buyers have to buy electricity at that
rate. In the next period the rate will change. In this way an electricity market with volatile unit rate
evolves that is also termed spot electricity market where ISO ensures receipt of payments and a
balance between generation and demand while the supplier (GenCos) need not know who is the
buyer (DisCo) of its product.
Besides above bilateral contracts or transactions negotiated among sellers (GenCos) and buyers
(distributors) directly are also accommodated by ISO in addition to what has been decided through
real-time bidding. However, the unavoidable flow of electrical energy between a given pair of the
supplier and the buyer in non-designated parallel paths needs to be accounted, though difficult, by
the ISO for billing purposes. ISO also allocates the transmission loss appropriately to the concerned
stakeholder (GenCo or DisCo).
ISO displays at regular intervals the available transfer capacity (ATC) of its transmission system
through an OASIS (Open Access Same- time Information System) for allowing further transactions
so that new parties may decide whether to participate in the real-time electricity market after the
bidding has already taken place. However, the exact market mechanism in deregulated environment
may vary from what has been mentioned here depending upon the socio-economic context of the
country.
The main challenge in deregulated systems control an ISO has to face is system security. This is
because the GenCos like to enhance their sales volume or may manipulate (i.e. generate less than the
agreed quantum) without caring for the power systems static and dynamic security. For this reason
ISO has to call for and always ensure on-contract ancillary services from some of the GenCos which
may not actually or may also be participating in real-time bidding. These services usually include
spinning reserve, frequency regulation or real time balancing, voltage/VAR support, emergency back
up etc.

6. Smart Grid
Smart grid is still a vision that aims at transforming the traditional power system so that it can (a)
accommodate besides the large central power plants dispersed small generations and storage devices
(based on renewable or conventional) including battery, fuel cells, fly wheel, plug-in hybrid electric
vehicles interfaced with the grid through power electronics, (b) deploy two way communication
using IT equipment and smart electrical appliances to transmit server commands to consumers and
receive consumers response (feedback) for more accurate operation and control of the system and
(c) retain the characteristics of a deregulated system or an electricity market.

7. Final Note
The prime requirement for ensuring reliability, quality and affordability of the electricity supply
either in a vertically integrated regulated or a deregulated power system using traditional EMS or
smart grid concept, is an on-line and real-time control system which makes large scale use of
emerging IT and communication technologies. However, the software and hardware cost proportion
in this is approximately 60:40. Development of the customized software for a power system control
centre requires about 20 man-years programming effort. This necessitates involvement of a host of
experts with in-depth knowledge in power system dynamics and modeling, and a few programmers
to assist them in developing interactive and real time computer codes for the models.

Bibliography
1. Jan Machowski, Janusz W. Bialek and James R. Bumby: Power System Dynamics Stability and
Control, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, UK, 2008.
2. Antonio Gomez-Expostio, Antonio J. Conejo and Claudio Canizares, Electric Energy Systems
Analysis and Operation, CRC Presss, New York, 2009.
3. S. Shahnawaz Ahmed: Power System Control, Proceedings of short course Recent Trends in
Power System Operation organized for the professionals in the academic/industrial sectors by the
Faculty of Electrical Engineering, UTM at Johor Bahru, Malaysia, 17-19 September 2001, pp. 2-1 to
2-16.
4. A.J.Wood, B.F. Wollenberg and Gerald B. Sheble, Power Generation, Operation and Control,
John Wiley & Sons, 2013.
5. W.A.Elmore, Pilot Protective Relaying, ABB-Marcel Dekker Inc., 2000.

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