Data-Driven Whitepapers
Our carefully researched articles present future concerns and historical data for the consideration of next generation innovators
as they develop best practices.
10 Best Practices to Reduce the Risk of Power Line Wildfires
Synopsis: Wildfires caused by transmission and distribution lines impact insurance rates, customer/public relations, and electric utilities’ bottom line. As wildfires ignited by faulted power lines are becoming more litigious, electric utilities need to demonstrate that they are quickly working to address and reduce risks.
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Over the last decade, lawsuits and settlements from these types of wildfires have cost electric utilities billions of dollars. In 2024, insurers increased rates for wildfire coverage by 200% to 300% based on prior year losses.
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This paper provides ten low-cost, immediate actions that every electric utility can implement to reduce the risk that a wildfire will be ignited by faults on a transmission or distribution line. All ten of these actions can be implemented in less than a year, as none require the installation of new components.
Electric Vehicle Infrastructure: Homework for Electric Utilities
Synopsis: As electric vehicle (EV) ownership expands, electric utilities have their work cut out for them. EVs will not only be in use at private residences, but also for publicly and privately owned fleets of light-duty and heavy-duty vehicles. New infrastructure will be required to support commercial EV charging stations for both individual EVs and fleets; EV chargers must be enhanced to better work with the electric energy grid; and electric utilities must consider infrastructure and energy cost recovery.
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EVs also present opportunities for electric utilities, including grid support during underfrequency events and climate-friendly disaster recovery efforts. This whitepaper discusses specific ideas that electric utilities can use to create an EV preparedness strategy so that they are ready for the widespread integration of EVs.
Effective Physical Security for Electric Substations
Synopsis: The electric energy grid is a soft target for vandals, thieves, saboteurs, and disgruntled employees. This whitepaper explains why today’s approach to physical security is not enough. Instead, the SHIELDR approach to physical security (an acronym for Strategically Harden, Isolate, Examine on Location, Duplicate, and React & Recover) should be implemented at substations across the US.
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Prescient’s approach to physical security at substations, SHIELDR, focuses on preventing a multi-state blackout caused by a disgruntled employee with access to facilities and a wealth of knowledge about facility weaknesses.
Wide Area Blackout Prevention Using Advanced Models
Synopsis: With today’s computational capability, traditional load-flow models need to be enhanced to accurately predict the reliability and robustness of the electric energy grid. Plus, traditional loadflow models should be enhanced to predict the performance of niche areas of the electric energy grid. Enhanced models will allow the implementation of power factor biased, undervoltage load shedding schemes that prevent the collapse of the electric energy grid within a state or across many states.
Enhanced models will provide an added level of assurance that saboteurs cannot create statewide blackouts, unusual weather conditions do not overstress the electric energy grid, and unlikely, but predictable, events are mitigated with minimal customer impacts.
Lehigh Navigation Coal Company Electrical System:
A turn of the Twentieth Century Mini-Grid
Synopsis: The Lehigh Navigation Coal Company’s (LNC) electrical system was a large, robust, 25 cycle, mini-grid that served high horsepower motor loads. From its single point of service, the LNC mini-grid served five coal mines and support facilities. At peak production, maximum load was about 40,000 horsepower.
The LNC electrical system is a historical example of a mini-grid that existed before today’s
integrated power grid was developed.