28 AUG 2023

i-DE, Iberdrola España distribution company, inspects 25,000 kilometers of power lines in the country.

  • The company reinforces security of supply with the inspection of power lines in the first half of this year. 
  • Investments in maintenance, renovation and construction of networks have enabled the company to improve supply quality by 15% in the last three years


 

i-DE, Iberdrola España's distribution company, has overhauled 25,000 kilometers of power lines (17,000 overhead and 8,000 subway) during the first six months of the year. The company has carried out regular inspections aimed at detecting possible anomalies in electrical installations of these characteristics. These inspections focus on elements such as insulators, conductors, iron fittings or supports that may have been damaged by lightning, falling trees or nearby works, among other causes.

The company has also carried out thermographic inspections along almost 15,000 kilometers of lines. This action consists of surveying electrical infrastructures with helicopters equipped with infrared cameras that measure the temperature of the installations. In this way it is possible to detect those points with inadequate temperatures in order to correct them and thus avoid supply interruptions.

The work to prevent incidents in the distribution network is completed with the cleaning of the corridors through which the lines run, with felling, pruning and clearing of vegetation at risk of coming into contact with the lines along some 2,000 kilometers of lines.

Improved supply quality

i-DE offers its 11.4 million customers in Spain a level of service quality 20% better than the average for the Spanish electricity sector. In the last three years, the company has managed to improve, thanks to its investments, the quality of the electricity supply it offers its customers by 15%.

The index that measures the continuity of supply - Interruption Time Equivalent to Installed Power (TIEPI) - accumulated up to the end of the first half of the year is below 45 minutes. In 2022, the company achieved the best year-end value in history.

This improvement is due to the investments made by i-DE in new electrical infrastructures and in the maintenance and renewal of existing ones, as well as its ambitious plan to digitize External link, opens in new window. its electrical networks. 

Iberdrola's strategic plan envisages a global investment of €47 billion in the period 2023-2025, of which €27 billion will be allocated to networks, to reach an asset base of €56 billion in 2025. 

The digitization of electricity grids in Spain is the key to moving towards a more flexible and secure system that will enable greater penetration of renewable generation, more self-consumption and the massive integration of electric vehicles. Digitalization also makes it possible to improve maintenance tasks and digitize customer service processes.

In recent years, i-DE has installed more than 11 million smart meters and has adapted around 90,000 transformation centers, incorporating state-of-the-art automations, which are capable of verifying and controlling the grid in real time. 

In this way, it is possible to quickly and remotely manage any action related to the supply point and services, improving efficiency and supply quality by reducing incidents and their duration. With this transformation of the grids towards an intelligent infrastructure, the company is making progress in its energy transition strategy and contributing to the decarbonization of the economy.External link, opens in new window. 

To respond to the challenges of the transformation of the energy system and continue to lead innovation in distribution grids, Iberdrola has launched its Global Smart Grids Innovation Hub External link, opens in new window. in Spain, a global smart grid innovation center that will act as a knowledge platform, combining its technological capacity with that of suppliers, collaborators and start-ups from around the world.