IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2020 - 14

guest editorial

Mani Vadari, Ron Melton, and Kevin Schneider

distribution operations
the evolution of distributed energy resources

U

UTILITIES THROUGHOUT THE
world are experiencing change with the
increasing digitalization of their systems and those of their customers. Efforts to decarbonize the electric power
system have led to growth in renewable
energy resources, particularly distributed energy resources (DERs), such as
generation, storage, and flexible load,
both in front of and behind the meter.
As this change occurs in any given utility
service area, new tools, such as advanced
distribution management systems (ADMSs), are needed to manage utility operations, planning, and business issues,
some of which are discussed here.
✔ Two-way power flow: The distribution system worldwide is designed to be radial in nature, with
power f lowing one way from
centralized generation sources
to consumption. This paradigm
is being upended by the introduction of DERs, in particular at
the grid edge. This is a change
of a very fundamental nature,
and it impacts nearly everything
in the grid, including infrastructure design and protection, work
procedures and safety, grid operations, system planning, and
commercial operations.
✔ New technical and business configurations: The growth in DERs,
the use of nonwires alternative
solutions, and the emergence of
customer-owned microgrids are
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MPE.2019.2945342
Date of current version: 7 January 2020

14

ieee power & energy magazine

impacting utility business models such as volumetric cost recovery and creating opportunities
for novel relationships between
utilities and customers or third
parties owning DERs.
✔ New players entering the marketplace: New entities, such as companies that lease solar panels, are
becoming active participants in
the electric power marketplace.
These entities generally offer services to consumers, may provide
services to network operators,
and may also wish to participate
in bulk power system markets.
These changes introduce both
economic and operational challenges and opportunities.
✔ New business models: These
changes are driving utilities and
regulators to reexamine utility
business models and consider
novel approaches to cost recovery
and rate making and which roles
should be subject to regulatory
oversight. Changes in business
models may include different services that, in turn, will require additional operational capabilities.
✔ New technologies being implemented: As utilities and their customers deploy newer technologies, the
digitization of the grid is growing,
resulting in greater amounts of
data needed in a timelier manner.
These data coming from smart
devices such as inverters, switches, reclosers, voltage regulators,
transformers, and capacitors must

be managed with updated approaches to provide a robust operational technology capability in
concert with existing utility information technology systems.
These changes require novel tools
for operations and planning at a utility.
This issue of IEEE Power & Energy
Magazine focuses on a set of technologies and applications designed to meet
this brave new world.

In this Issue
This issue includes a wide-ranging set of
approaches for addressing the new set of
changes confronting the utility industry.
The articles present implementations of
ADMSs at small and large utilities as
well as an analysis of potential research
opportunities as the utility environment
changes over time.
Mani Vadari begins this issue with
"The Future of Distribution Operations and Planning." This article sets
the stage for introducing the reader to
the dramatic set of changes facing
the utility industry, many of which are
impacting distribution systems. The
challenges are so remarkable that they
have the potential to completely change
not just distribution operations but,
over time, may result in a blurring of
the lines between the transmission
and distribution systems. The utility industry needs new tools to manage and
operate the grid under this paradigm,
where the utility will begin to coordinate operations with the customer. The
tools for engaging distribution-level
resources cannot be just an extension
january/february 2020
IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - January/February 2020
