Hammad Arshad Qureshi
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In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious the Most Merciful
Good Morning ladies and Gentlemen,
Yesterday one news appeared on express news that water and electricity minister Mr. Abid Sher Ali mentioned that in next March 2018 only those areas will face load shedding or Electric cut downs which don’t want to pay their bills. So as an Electrical Engineer myself I assumed that is this the only reason of electricity and energy deficit in our country or there are other reasons as well which are purely related to mismanagement of government, its institutions (Wapda and others) and their lack of interest in accepting new technologies and trends for better development and management of electricity. Yes there is an energy deficit and we are producing less electricity then requirement but impact of load shedding can be much less then what is happening currently. If we agree with Mr. Abid Sher Ali statement that because of nonpayment of bills or illegal ways of obtaining electricity are major reasons for Electricity shortage then one assumes how come the welfare countries in Europe are providing free or highly subsidized electricity for its citizens? There has to be some other factors also effecting our requirements. The below article is a strive to look in to those factors.
How Electricity is generated and transmitted
First of all before we move forward and uncover how mismanagement and negligence is causing Pakistan to suffer in terms of electricity and energy shortage, let us understand how electricity is generated, transmitted and distributed in the system. The reason behind it is our citizens to know, how government bureaucracy is effecting our energy needs. And ordinary citizens of Pakistan are usually unaware of below technicalities. Let’s start with quote of former secretary general of UN Kofi Anan “Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family”.
(Source: - https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/k/kofiannan389917.html).
So as shown in below Figure 1 the power is generated by any source. This source can be any dams, solar plants, windmills or any power generation plants. From generation plants the voltage is stepped up (or increased) in to high voltage (probably in mega volts or sometimes higher). This is done due to two primary reasons 1) to decrease line losses 2) to reduce the size of transmission cables (Reduce cost of long distance lines). For the first reason I will skip to explain as it will go deep in electricity and magnetism which ordinary people won’t understand. For second reason remember one universal formula for power generation,
(Figure 1)
P=V*I where P is Power, V is Voltage and I is current. Now let’s take an example to understand this concept in simple terms. If one power generation plant requires 300KW to deliver how much the cable size does it require to transmit this power?
Now if you apply the above formula to know the current I= 300,000/230=1304A cable is required per phase to transmit this power. And the size of cost of the cable to carry 1304A current is too much high and out of question. Now to avoid this we step up voltage by 1 KV Step up transformer. So now applying same above formula I=300,000/230,000=1.304A now you can see the cost difference between 1304A cable and 1.304A cables.
That is the technical reason why voltage is stepped up as soon as it is generated and transmitted. Now let’s look into transmission lines, the transmission lines as everyone have idea is used to carry current and power. And then the voltage is stepped down to medium voltage ranging from 600V-35KV via medium voltage substation or transformer and distributed to different loads (Figure 2 has better view). And then the voltage is again stepped down by using low voltage transformers (Which you usually see outside your towns and streets are step down transformers) to distribute the electricity in your houses.
(Figure 2 Source https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Electricity_Grid_Schematic_English.svg)
Where Our Government bureaucracy is failing us
The Above description I provided you how electricity is produced and transmitted is because of reason. I wanted to show how our government bureaucracy is failing us while keeping themselves higher government jobs with all the benefits and grades in Wapda, KECL and other institutes. The reasons are as below:-
Have you ever wondered why advertisements on televisions and newspapers are specifically calling us to reduce the time for pumping motors and usage of air conditioners? And how come your bills are high in the month when your usage of pumping motors and air conditioners are higher? The Technical answer behind it is Reactive Power generated by Motors.
So now coming back to point in order to benchmark, how countries around the world are tackling this problem of Reactive power in the products containing inductive loads. It is by applying robust and strict efficiency standards on any motors or motor assembled products entering in their Countries. The motor and air conditioner manufacturers can develop energy efficient standard products that will result in decrease of reactive power if the particular country enforce the standard strictly. For Example in USA , Canada and European states they are using energy efficient motors IE3 and below that you are not allowed to ship or sell or assemble. In gulf they are using IE2 and below that is not allowed. In Pakistan I am yet to see what standard is our requirement. Any efficiency motor or inductive product is allowed to be sold and to be used. And now you people can imagine how many air conditioners and motors and inductive products are simultaneously running in Pakistan and how much reactive power they are generating. And how our Government Bureaucracy is failing us by not introducing and implementing strict standards for inductive loads products.
3. Usage of Non Efficient high voltage/ medium voltage & low voltage transformer: - Before proceeding let us explain what does efficiency means Efficiency is simply; Efficiency= Output Power/Input Power. This means efficiency is simply how much power you input in the system and what output you are getting against it. In Ideal systems it is equaling to 1 but usually 0.85 to 0.9 factor of efficiency of transformer is known as high efficiency. This means after inputting certain power in to the transformer after loses you will have 85% or 90% of desirable power available at output.
So again coming back to point what is happening wrong in our system. I don’t know if you guys remember but PTI chairman Imran Khan while addressing the rally in last election campaign said that we will decrease the load shedding or Power losses by increasing the efficiency of transformer’s . He raised a very valid point our high voltage, medium voltage and low voltage transformers are not calibrated to its maximum efficiency or we are not using high efficiency transformers. Which results in loses from high voltage transformer to low voltage transformer then to house distribution systems.
To explain my above point in nutshell let me give a small example of how serious this issue is and how easily we can avoid massive power loses in our current system by just installing high efficiency transformers. If for example our high voltage transformer’s efficiency is 0.55. this means 45% of the power generated by power plants (Dams, windmills, solar plants) is lost in power loses of transformer. Now what we have is 55% of original power generated power plants. And this 55% will be transmitted through transmission lines and more loses will occur during transmission lines and when it will reach medium voltage transformer it will convert this 55% of original power minus loses in transmission lines to desired power based on its efficiency. Now if efficiency of medium voltage substation or transformer is again 0.55 then this means 55% of 55% original power minus loses in transmission lines will be generated by medium voltage transformer. And then again this 55% of 55% original power will be send to our local transformer which you often see in your area or sectors to distribute to your house (Refer to figure 1 and 2 for better understanding).
In short by not calibrating and synchronizing our transformer to higher efficiency and performance we are losing huge chunk of power generated in the system itself. And I have absolutely no idea why bureaucracy in ministry of water and electricity is not looking in to this. I know for fact that this requires big investment. But if we can save 10 billion Rs. for census or population counting then few hundred million Rs. to start with big cities like Islamabad, Lahore, Multan, Karachi, Quetta and Peshawar can be utilized to save power resources for other smaller cities and towns.
4. Capacitor Banks
Another major discrepancy and set back in our systems is that we are not doing enough to avoid loses created by reactive power (which I explained above). In other countries there is emphasis on how to decrease reactive power, and many researches, methodologies and Techniques are introduced for this sake. The Most common method is introduction of capacitor banks or variable speed/frequency drives in parallel to the system power. What these capacitor banks do is, they increase the power factor of the systems which in returns decreases the reactive power. Which is extremely good solution to avoid the loses generated by inductive loads.
The introduction of capacitor banks inside the major power hubs is the necessity of the hour in Pakistan. Because if our power factor will remain below 0.9 Factor (This factor is the minimum value introduce by various countries in region). Then loses accumulated by reactive power will be much higher.
5. How to stop Electricity theft
Now coming back to Mr. Abid Sher Ali comment about electricity theft. The million dollar question arises can it be avoided without introduction of lineman’s, bureaucracy and their corruptions? The answer is absolutely yes. There are several methods to stop this. The most famous method of electricity theft is the feedback neutral wire of electric meter or KWH (kilowatts hours) meter is disconnected to stop the flow of meter per unit. This can be easily avoided by calculating the power distributed in the area and if the power consumed is more than the power measured this means theft is taking place. This is the traditional way which our electricity distribution companies usually follow. Chances of corruption are extremely high in this method .Now for more robust and strong alternative present. We can introduce intelligent prepaid electric meters. What are these prepaid meters? One of my Sudanese friend (Electrical Engineer) informed me in Sudan they introduce such type of meters that the circuit to the consumer’s house is directly connected with the local low voltage transformer. Now whatever amount of electricity a consumer want to use he can use it by inputting the balance cards similar to cell phones in the meter.
This is just one method which I explained above which can be used in Pakistan. Otherwise there are several other methods like neutral detectors, special controls logic, alert system interfaced with Scada or BMS that can be used in order to tackle this issue if our bureaucracy allows.
Conclusion
To summarize following are the conclusions which I find on which actions need to be taken immediately.
Hammad Arshad Qureshi,
hammad.arshad2000@gmail.com
Good Morning ladies and Gentlemen,
Yesterday one news appeared on express news that water and electricity minister Mr. Abid Sher Ali mentioned that in next March 2018 only those areas will face load shedding or Electric cut downs which don’t want to pay their bills. So as an Electrical Engineer myself I assumed that is this the only reason of electricity and energy deficit in our country or there are other reasons as well which are purely related to mismanagement of government, its institutions (Wapda and others) and their lack of interest in accepting new technologies and trends for better development and management of electricity. Yes there is an energy deficit and we are producing less electricity then requirement but impact of load shedding can be much less then what is happening currently. If we agree with Mr. Abid Sher Ali statement that because of nonpayment of bills or illegal ways of obtaining electricity are major reasons for Electricity shortage then one assumes how come the welfare countries in Europe are providing free or highly subsidized electricity for its citizens? There has to be some other factors also effecting our requirements. The below article is a strive to look in to those factors.
How Electricity is generated and transmitted
First of all before we move forward and uncover how mismanagement and negligence is causing Pakistan to suffer in terms of electricity and energy shortage, let us understand how electricity is generated, transmitted and distributed in the system. The reason behind it is our citizens to know, how government bureaucracy is effecting our energy needs. And ordinary citizens of Pakistan are usually unaware of below technicalities. Let’s start with quote of former secretary general of UN Kofi Anan “Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family”.
(Source: - https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/k/kofiannan389917.html).
So as shown in below Figure 1 the power is generated by any source. This source can be any dams, solar plants, windmills or any power generation plants. From generation plants the voltage is stepped up (or increased) in to high voltage (probably in mega volts or sometimes higher). This is done due to two primary reasons 1) to decrease line losses 2) to reduce the size of transmission cables (Reduce cost of long distance lines). For the first reason I will skip to explain as it will go deep in electricity and magnetism which ordinary people won’t understand. For second reason remember one universal formula for power generation,
(Figure 1)
P=V*I where P is Power, V is Voltage and I is current. Now let’s take an example to understand this concept in simple terms. If one power generation plant requires 300KW to deliver how much the cable size does it require to transmit this power?
Now if you apply the above formula to know the current I= 300,000/230=1304A cable is required per phase to transmit this power. And the size of cost of the cable to carry 1304A current is too much high and out of question. Now to avoid this we step up voltage by 1 KV Step up transformer. So now applying same above formula I=300,000/230,000=1.304A now you can see the cost difference between 1304A cable and 1.304A cables.
That is the technical reason why voltage is stepped up as soon as it is generated and transmitted. Now let’s look into transmission lines, the transmission lines as everyone have idea is used to carry current and power. And then the voltage is stepped down to medium voltage ranging from 600V-35KV via medium voltage substation or transformer and distributed to different loads (Figure 2 has better view). And then the voltage is again stepped down by using low voltage transformers (Which you usually see outside your towns and streets are step down transformers) to distribute the electricity in your houses.
(Figure 2 Source https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Electricity_Grid_Schematic_English.svg)
Where Our Government bureaucracy is failing us
The Above description I provided you how electricity is produced and transmitted is because of reason. I wanted to show how our government bureaucracy is failing us while keeping themselves higher government jobs with all the benefits and grades in Wapda, KECL and other institutes. The reasons are as below:-
- Non-technical Electricity and Water Minister it is a saying in military “In the leadership of brave and competent general even the weak army will perform well. And Even the strong army will fail to perform in the leadership of incompetent general”. The same concept applies in civilian world. Our Electricity and Water Minister is Abid Sher Ali whom have MBA degree. I am absolutely not judging the capabilities of our minister but he lacks the technical education and experience to tackle the issue of Energy Shortage. So what happens is he have to listen to the so called “Advisors” who want to maintain the status quo and are the beneficial of the current system. PML (N) Government has very good and talented ministers who are expert of their fields like Mr. Ishaq Dar to run finance ministry whom himself is Chartered Accountant (CA) and Chaudhary Nisar to run Interior Ministry. But Abid Sher Ali is not the suitable guy to tackle this issue.
- Non Standard and efficient products: - Before we go to details, let’s look the three primary loads (Power consuming) that exist. The first is resistive common examples are tube lights and heaters. Second is Inductive common examples of inductive loads are Pumping motors and air conditioners and any device which contains motors. Third is capacitive loads examples are DC Power Sources and Capacitor Banks.
Have you ever wondered why advertisements on televisions and newspapers are specifically calling us to reduce the time for pumping motors and usage of air conditioners? And how come your bills are high in the month when your usage of pumping motors and air conditioners are higher? The Technical answer behind it is Reactive Power generated by Motors.
So now coming back to point in order to benchmark, how countries around the world are tackling this problem of Reactive power in the products containing inductive loads. It is by applying robust and strict efficiency standards on any motors or motor assembled products entering in their Countries. The motor and air conditioner manufacturers can develop energy efficient standard products that will result in decrease of reactive power if the particular country enforce the standard strictly. For Example in USA , Canada and European states they are using energy efficient motors IE3 and below that you are not allowed to ship or sell or assemble. In gulf they are using IE2 and below that is not allowed. In Pakistan I am yet to see what standard is our requirement. Any efficiency motor or inductive product is allowed to be sold and to be used. And now you people can imagine how many air conditioners and motors and inductive products are simultaneously running in Pakistan and how much reactive power they are generating. And how our Government Bureaucracy is failing us by not introducing and implementing strict standards for inductive loads products.
3. Usage of Non Efficient high voltage/ medium voltage & low voltage transformer: - Before proceeding let us explain what does efficiency means Efficiency is simply; Efficiency= Output Power/Input Power. This means efficiency is simply how much power you input in the system and what output you are getting against it. In Ideal systems it is equaling to 1 but usually 0.85 to 0.9 factor of efficiency of transformer is known as high efficiency. This means after inputting certain power in to the transformer after loses you will have 85% or 90% of desirable power available at output.
So again coming back to point what is happening wrong in our system. I don’t know if you guys remember but PTI chairman Imran Khan while addressing the rally in last election campaign said that we will decrease the load shedding or Power losses by increasing the efficiency of transformer’s . He raised a very valid point our high voltage, medium voltage and low voltage transformers are not calibrated to its maximum efficiency or we are not using high efficiency transformers. Which results in loses from high voltage transformer to low voltage transformer then to house distribution systems.
To explain my above point in nutshell let me give a small example of how serious this issue is and how easily we can avoid massive power loses in our current system by just installing high efficiency transformers. If for example our high voltage transformer’s efficiency is 0.55. this means 45% of the power generated by power plants (Dams, windmills, solar plants) is lost in power loses of transformer. Now what we have is 55% of original power generated power plants. And this 55% will be transmitted through transmission lines and more loses will occur during transmission lines and when it will reach medium voltage transformer it will convert this 55% of original power minus loses in transmission lines to desired power based on its efficiency. Now if efficiency of medium voltage substation or transformer is again 0.55 then this means 55% of 55% original power minus loses in transmission lines will be generated by medium voltage transformer. And then again this 55% of 55% original power will be send to our local transformer which you often see in your area or sectors to distribute to your house (Refer to figure 1 and 2 for better understanding).
In short by not calibrating and synchronizing our transformer to higher efficiency and performance we are losing huge chunk of power generated in the system itself. And I have absolutely no idea why bureaucracy in ministry of water and electricity is not looking in to this. I know for fact that this requires big investment. But if we can save 10 billion Rs. for census or population counting then few hundred million Rs. to start with big cities like Islamabad, Lahore, Multan, Karachi, Quetta and Peshawar can be utilized to save power resources for other smaller cities and towns.
4. Capacitor Banks
Another major discrepancy and set back in our systems is that we are not doing enough to avoid loses created by reactive power (which I explained above). In other countries there is emphasis on how to decrease reactive power, and many researches, methodologies and Techniques are introduced for this sake. The Most common method is introduction of capacitor banks or variable speed/frequency drives in parallel to the system power. What these capacitor banks do is, they increase the power factor of the systems which in returns decreases the reactive power. Which is extremely good solution to avoid the loses generated by inductive loads.
The introduction of capacitor banks inside the major power hubs is the necessity of the hour in Pakistan. Because if our power factor will remain below 0.9 Factor (This factor is the minimum value introduce by various countries in region). Then loses accumulated by reactive power will be much higher.
5. How to stop Electricity theft
Now coming back to Mr. Abid Sher Ali comment about electricity theft. The million dollar question arises can it be avoided without introduction of lineman’s, bureaucracy and their corruptions? The answer is absolutely yes. There are several methods to stop this. The most famous method of electricity theft is the feedback neutral wire of electric meter or KWH (kilowatts hours) meter is disconnected to stop the flow of meter per unit. This can be easily avoided by calculating the power distributed in the area and if the power consumed is more than the power measured this means theft is taking place. This is the traditional way which our electricity distribution companies usually follow. Chances of corruption are extremely high in this method .Now for more robust and strong alternative present. We can introduce intelligent prepaid electric meters. What are these prepaid meters? One of my Sudanese friend (Electrical Engineer) informed me in Sudan they introduce such type of meters that the circuit to the consumer’s house is directly connected with the local low voltage transformer. Now whatever amount of electricity a consumer want to use he can use it by inputting the balance cards similar to cell phones in the meter.
This is just one method which I explained above which can be used in Pakistan. Otherwise there are several other methods like neutral detectors, special controls logic, alert system interfaced with Scada or BMS that can be used in order to tackle this issue if our bureaucracy allows.
Conclusion
To summarize following are the conclusions which I find on which actions need to be taken immediately.
- This is baseless claim that because of electricity theft we are having electricity deficit. If that is true why aren’t precautionary and preventive measures taken against it.
- Pakistan needs to introduce strict laws and standards as soon as possible to inductive loads (especially motors) manufacturers to maintain energy efficiency to IE3.
- Installation and up gradation of transformers to high efficiency and high performance are necessity of time. You can’t expect by pumping more power into the system and not controlling loses will change anything as demand of the required power in Pakistan is increasing day by day to industrial revolution introduced by CPEC.
- New and efficient ways to curb reactive power must be introduced in our systems.
Hammad Arshad Qureshi,
hammad.arshad2000@gmail.com
