ELEC3203/9203 Electricity Networks

Module 1: Overview of electric power systems

Prof. Gregor Verbič
Centre for Future Energy Networks
School of Electrical and Computer Engineering
The University of Sydney, Australia
[Link]@[Link]

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The slides are based on Daniel Kirschen’s
slides that accompany the book:
Power Systems, Fundamental Concepts and
the Transition to Sustainability, Wiley, 2023.

The content of Module 1 is covered in

Chapter 1.

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Overview of Module 1
• Big-picture view of electric power systems:
• What they are?
• What is their purpose?
• Historical development
• Module 8 will discuss electric loads
• Module 9 will discuss electricity generation
• Module 12 will discuss electricity markets and the organisation of the
electric power industry

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Why use electrical energy?
• Electricity is the most versatile energy carrier
• Electricity delivers energy:
• Cleanly
• Efficiently
• Economically
• Flexibly

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What is its main drawback?
• Storing large amounts of electrical energy is difficult or expensive
• Electrical energy must be delivered as a continuous process
• Rate of energy delivery i.e., power, is a fundamental concept
• Electricity supply and demand must match in real time – imbalances
that could lead to system instability or outages
• Reliable, continuous delivery requires coordinated operation of a set
of devices i.e., a power system

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What are the attributes of a good power system?
Reliability (deliver power with as few interruptions as possible):
• Ensuring sufficient generation resources (system adequacy)
• Balancing supply and demand at all times
• Dealing with random disturbances (system security)
Affordability (deliver power at the lowest cost):
• Using the cheapest generation resources
• Optimal use of network infrastructure (distributed vs centralised)
Sustainability:
• Using zero-emissions generation resources
• Energy efficiency

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Energy trilemma
• Reliability, affordability and
sustainability are conflicting objectives:
• Improving reliability costs money
• Cheapest forms of electricity generation
are not always sustainable

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Power system structure
Generation
• Produces electricity from primary sources
• Conventional (coal, gas, hydro, nuclear)
• Variable (wind, solar, run-of-river hydro)
Transmission
• Efficient transport over long distances
• AC, HVDC
Distribution
• Supply customers
End use
• Supply customers

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Power system structure
• Multiple sources connected to multiple
loads
• Enhances reliability
• Single failure does not result in a loss of
power to the consumers
• Improves economy
• Aggregating loads reduces the amount of
generation capacity needed
• Load can be supplied by most economical
generation
• Supports sustainability
• Aggregated wind and solar generation is less
variable and more predictable

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Electric power supply in (eastern) Australia last week

[Link]
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Why ac?

𝑃𝑃𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 = 𝑉𝑉. 𝐼𝐼 𝑅𝑅
𝐼𝐼

𝑃𝑃𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 = 𝐼𝐼 2 𝑅𝑅
Load 𝑉𝑉
2
𝑃𝑃𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙
𝑃𝑃𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 = 𝑅𝑅
𝑉𝑉 2

Operating at higher voltages

significantly reduces losses

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Why ac?

Relative
Voltage
Losses
110 V 1
220 V 0.25
13 kV 71.6 10-6
132 kV 694.4 10-9
345 kV 101.7 10-9

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ac transformers
• Step-up the voltage
• Step-down the voltage
• Relatively cheap
• Highly reliable
• Must balance
• Safety
• Cost
• Practicality
 Use different voltages at
different locations

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 Typical operating voltages in large power systems

On average, only about 5% of the electrical energy generated in the United States is dissipated as losses in the
transmission and distribution networks. Most of these losses occur in the low-voltage distribution networks.

Image: United States Department of Energy, Blackout 2003, “Final Report on the August 14, 2003, Blackout in the United States and Canada: Causes and Recommendations”
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Typical voltage levels (in Australia)
330 kV 132 kV 132 kV 66 kV 66 kV 11 kV
Zone substation

National Regional Regional sub-

transmission transmission transmission Local
distribution

Street-level
distribution 400 V 11 kV
(240 V 1φ)

Distribution transformer
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Typical consumer connections
330 kV 132 kV 66 kV 11 kV

Large Large
Industrial
industrial commercial
consumers
consumers consumers

400 V

Residential and
commercial
consumers

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Transmission and distribution networks
Transmission network: Distribution network:
• Transmit large amounts of • Distribute power to consumers
power over long distances over a limited area
• Meshed network • Typically, radial network
• Except in some dense urban areas
• Redundant paths: • Lower reliability
• Improve reliability • Acceptable because faults affect
• Improve economics fewer consumers
• Requires sophisticated • Radial networks require less
protection schemes against sophisticated protection
faults schemes against faults

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Centralised and distributed generation
Centralised generation Distributed generation
• Conventional generation • Rooftop solar panels
• Coal plants
• Gas plants • Connected to the distribution
• Hydro plants network
• Nuclear plants
• Renewable generation
• Wind farms
• Solar farms
• Connected to the transmission
network

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What about high voltage dc transmission?
• Requires power electronics
• Convert high voltage ac into high voltage dc at one end of the line
• Convert dc back into ac at the other end
• These converter stations are very expensive
• Justified when:
• A lot of power must be transmitted over a long distance
• Transmitting this power using ac could create stability problems
• Two power systems operating at different frequencies must be connected
• A long underground or submarine cable is required

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Cyber infrastructure

CONTROL SYSTEMS RELAYS METERS

COMMUNICATION COMPUTERS CONTROL CENTERS

NETWORKS

Some of these topics are covered in

• ELEC5204 Power System Analysis And Protection
• ELEC5208 Intelligent Electricity Networks
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Organisational structure
• Traditional electric utility
• Owns and operates all the generation, transmission, and distribution assets
• Has a monopoly for the sale of electricity over its service territory
• Vertically integrated monopoly
• Investor-owned utilities are regulated by government body
• Unbundled competitive market
• Generating companies compete to sell electrical energy in open market
• Transmission and distribution remain regulated monopolies
• System operator is responsible for reliability and efficient operation
• In some locations consumers buy electricity from their local distribution utility
• On other locations, they have a choice of supplier
• More on that when we discuss electricity markets

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Historical evolution
• Originally:
• Local generation supplying local consumers
• Mostly in urban areas
• Economic and reliability benefits
• Development of transmission lines connecting remote generation to cities
• Interconnections between power systems
• 1930s: large scale rural electrification
• 1950s-1960s: development of continent-scale interconnections

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Australian networks

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Australian National
Electricity Market (NEM)
• Interconnection on the eastern seaboard
• 40,000 km of transmission lines and
cables
• Supplies 181 TWh each year (down from
200 TWh in 2017)
• Total installed generation capacity of
74 GW
• $17.7 billion traded in the financial year
2023–24

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North-American interconnections

Source: Congressional Budget Office

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Interconnected network of Continental Europe

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Worldwide interconnections

By Alinor at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, [Link] 29

Proposed European supergrid
Emphasis on offshore wind

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Residential and commercial solar generation

Connected to the distribution network

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Microgrids

Image: MESA Solutions 32