A Maintenance Optimzation Policy for an Electric Power Distribution System: Case of the HV/MV Substations

Abstract

Today, in the modern era, and under the pressure of rapid development around the kingdom regions, electric utilities are confronted with a myriad of challenges that include aging infrastructure, enhanced expectation of reliability, reduced cost, and coping effectively with uncertainties and changing regulation requirements. Indeed, for distribution systems, HV/MV substations represent a complex and critical physical asset that requires a careful evaluation of their maintenance practices aiming at more cost-effective tasks. The first concern of the electric power distribution company in Morocco is the optimization of the distribution network maintenance scheduling, to minimize system operating costs and ensure that the system is running most economically. There is significant pressure on power providers for greater system reliability and improvement of customer satisfaction, while similar emphasis is placed on cost reduction. These cost reductions focus on reducing operating and maintenance expenses, and minimizing investments in new plants and equipment. However, the present of the electricity distribution, influenced by a number of technical restrictions and strict regulatory requirements to meet, leads distribution utilities to search new ways of optimizing the maintenance management, make an effort to maximize profit by reducing their electricity supply and operation costs while maintaining their reliability, developing more effective activities, with lower costs. Furthermore, maximal HV/MV substation asset value and minimal maintenance cost are typical economic objectives of the electric utilities. The optimization of maintenance is one possible technique to reduce maintenance costs while improving reliability and utilities need to implement new strategies for more effective maintenance techniques and Asset Management (AM) methods programs to manage inspections and maintenance activities in order to control HV/MV substation equipment conditions. However, development of strategies to make sound decisions in order to effectively improve equipment and system reliability while meeting constraints such as a maintenance budget is a challenge. Finally, this paper describes the application of a new approach based Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) methodology to optimize maintenance resources and to the development of maintenance plan for HV/MV distribution substations. For this purpose, a case study was performed on the equipment of power distribution systems for the benefit of a holding company (ONEE Electricity Distribution) in Morocco. The present study was conducted in Oujda Exploitation Maintenance Service (OEXMS), in charge of operation and maintenance of distribution networks.