Smart Grid on field application in the Italian framework: The A.S.SE.M. project

Today, distribution systems are subject to an increasing penetration of dispersed generation. This is an important step toward a new green, sustainable, paradigm of energy. However, injections from renewables on distribution networks can cause technical issues in power systems, which require to put in operation new monitoring and control procedures and apparatuses. The paper details the Smart Grid experiment developed by A.S.SE.M. (a DSO of Central Italy) on its distribution grid. The project, incentivized by the Italian Energy Authority in the framework of Resolution ARG/elt 39/10, involves the installation of protection and automation devices in the HV/MV substation and over the distribution grid, 10 MV users and one LV user. The following innovative features are provided: increase in the reliability of Loss of Mains protections by transfer trip messages; logic selectivity between protections; centralized voltage control; real-time monitoring and control of generation. This project, together with the other pilot applications supported by Res. ARG/elt 39/10, will provide important information to the Italian Energy Authority, useful to define an output-based regulation for Smart Grids.