USAID to help strengthen country’s energy sector

Programme aimed at helping reduce unscheduled load-shedding.

FAISALABAD:


The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Power Distribution Program is assisting Pakistan’s energy sector by improving the power supply and distribution.


The agency’s power distribution programme is training staff of government-owned power distribution companies (DISCOs) in load management, which will eventually help reduce unscheduled load-shedding.

The USAID programme organised a two-day training session for the Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (Fesco) officials in Faisalabad.


Fesco Chief Executive Officer Rashid Aslam distributed certificates among the trainees. The training was attended by 25 Fesco officers including Executive Engineers (XENs), Sub-divisional Officers (SDOs) and Chief Engineer (CE) Transmission and Generation levels.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Power Distribution Programme has successfully implemented its Load Data Improvement (LDI) Program in DISCOs, aimed at minimising unscheduled load shedding.

Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) devices were installed on a fast-track basis in all DISCOs including Fesco. The project also included the upgrade of each DISCOs Power Distribution Centre (PDC) and accordingly Fesco’s PDC was upgraded and made functional, with live data now being acquired from all of its grid stations and outgoing feeders.

Currently, under the USAIDs LDI programme, the Fesco PDC has fitted multiple screens displaying live load data by grid substation and feeders. Power factor information is also displayed indicating when capacitor banks should be deployed to improve the voltage level. To date, a total of 1,064 AMR meters have been installed on 85 grid stations of Fesco that are reporting live load data information to perform effective load management and curtailing unscheduled load-shedding.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 20th, 2014.

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