With an aim to provide reliable power supply to its customers, the BSES discoms has started using drones to map distribution assets, detection of power theft, inspection of rooftop solar installations and overhead lines and equipment, grid-substations, damaged switches, capacitors and for other purposes.
A senior BSES official said that this will provide BSES' field teams, literally with a bird-eye's view of the potential problem areas (physical condition of the assets and hot-spots) and helping it to take preventive actions by timely flagging irregularities.
The official said that BSES Yamuna Power Limited (BYPL) and BSES Rajdhani Power Limited (BRPL) have undertaken projects for visual and thermal mapping of the distribution infrastructure. "The drones were fitted with high definition camera for visual inspection and an infra-red camera for thermal imaging for identification of the hot-spots for the same purpose," he said.
Announcing the move, BSES spokesperson said, "We continuously look for state-of-the-art technologies and innovations that help us serve our over 43 lakh customers better. Successful adoption of drone technology is a huge step in preventive maintenance exercise, critical for ensuring reliable power supply".
The technology is also used for accurate assessment of rooftop solar potential and dealing with vegetation encroachment around power infrastructure. A programme has been drawn for using drones to monitor the health of the electricity network, including high voltage lines and grid sub-stations.
The BSES has collaborated with Garuda UAV, a leading drone service provider for visual and thermal mapping of the electrical infrastructure, along with end-to-end solutions for maintenance and planning, he said.
In BSES Yamuna Power Limited (BYPL) areas, inspections were undertaken over a 45-day period at BYPL's Vivek Vihar grid and the EHV Circuit between the Vivek Vihar and Patparganj grid in East Delhi, he said.
"Through thermal scanning, drone assessment was able to determine health of the network and identify several hot-spots, which if unchecked could have caused problems in subsequent months. It was also able to determine the physical condition of the towers and identify deterioration," he said.
A pilot project at the 66 kV Paschim Vihar Grid station, along with two-towers of 66kV Bodella 1 - Paschim Vihar Circuit 1 and 2 and 33 kV Mukherjee Park Circuit 3 near Chaukahndi, were undertaken in BSES Rajdhani Power Limited (BRPL) was undertaken using drones, he said.
Timely detection of potential trouble spots and issues plays a crucial role in the ensuring reliable power supply. Though BSES has a very robust system of undertaking preventing and predictive maintenance of its distribution network, the use of drone technology will be a force multiplier in its arsenal.
BRPL and BYPL are premier power distribution companies and Joint Ventures between Reliance Infrastructure Limited and GoNCT Delhi.
