Northern Powergrid upgrades remote monitoring and control system

Northern Powergrid has signed an £11.4 million contract with EMR Integrated Solutions to upgrade the remote monitoring and control system for 7,500 of its secondary substations.

The new system will operate using an internet protocol (IP) communications platform allowing Northern Powergrid to centralise the monitoring and control of the substations, activate enhanced automation and gain a better understanding of consumption patterns across its network.

The investment is part of the company’s £83 million Smart Grid Enablers upgrade programme.

Mark Nicholson, head of smart grids at the distribution network operator, said: “This project will enhance network flexibility and build more digital capability to meet our customers’ needs now and in the future.

“It will help facilitate our transition to a distribution system operator that actively manages varying generation and demands across our grid as our customers become more dependent on electricity to power their lights, heating and transport.

He continued: “The ability to remotely operate more of our assets and improve network visibility through collection of real-time monitoring data will help us provide better services to our customers.

“We can use the IP network to remotely troubleshoot and manage devices across the air, which reduces infrastructure management costs and enables us to be responsive to an active network and the needs of our customers.”

Northern Powergrid project manager Paul Green said: “The project rollout is underway and due for completion by March 2023.

“We’re working closely with the team at EMR to ensure we have the support we need to deliver our plans.  Where we have technical challenges, we work together to overcome them, and the project team is very responsive which is important as we make this investment a reality for our customers.”