“Automatic Generation Control (AGC)”, a new system to maintain the reliability of grid frequency, was recently dedicated to the nation at the hands of Union power minister, R.K. Singh.
The launch of AGC is is expected to facilitate achieving the government’s ambitious target of 500 GW non-fossil fuel-based generation capacity by 2030. The AGC is being operated by Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO) through National Load Despatch Centre. Through AGC, POSOCO sends signals to power plants every four seconds to maintain frequency and reliability of the Power System.
Under the POSOCO’s AGC project, till date 51 GW of generation capacity across all five regions is operational. This is a significant milestone in improving the resilience of the Indian Power System manifolds.
Through AGC, NLDC (National Load Despatch Centre) sends signals to more than 50 power plants in the country every 4 seconds to maintain the frequency and reliability of the Indian power system. This will ensure more efficient and automatic frequency control for handling variable and intermittent renewable generation.
New Report
R.K. Singh also released a report titled “Assessment of Inertia in Indian Power System” which has been prepared by POSOCO in collaboration with IIT Bombay. Considering the aggressive target of integrating RE capacity in India, POSOCO instituted a study in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, to review the global best practices in respect of estimation, measurement, and monitoring of Power System inertia and evolve a methodology for the same in the context of Indian Power System.
Also read: Tata Power Collaborates With IIT Delhi On Smart Grid Technologies
Challenges
Talking about the challenges of the Indian Power System at a recent event, Singh said, “POSOCO has to brace up for challenges of the future, in our national goal of transition to cleaner energy. The dynamics in the Indian Power Sector are multifold, ranging from the changing fuel mix, penetration of renewables, the proliferation of distributed energy resources, and the challenge to deepen system security and resilience.”
POSOCO Day
R.K. Singh was speaking on the occasion of POSOCO Day that is observed on January 3 to commemorate its independent functioning that began on January 3, 2017, under Ministry of Power as one of the power PSUs after separating from PGCIL, as its subsidiary organization. POSOCO is responsible to ensure the integrated operation of the Grid in a reliable, efficient, and secure manner. It consists of 5 Regional Load Despatch Centres (RLDCs) and the National Load Despatch Centre (NLDC).
Featured photograph for representation only
