By idowu oyebanjo
There
is no doubt that the challenges facing the electricity industry is huge even as
all but the Transmission Network have become private concerns. There are
fundamental changes now taking place which will define the general outlook of
the Nigerian Power System in the future as the power grid becomes unbundled and
privatised such that the traditionally integrated and centrally dispatched
energy system becomes a largely distributed and more complex architecture.
It is
fair to say that today's technical and regulatory governance framework is
grossly inadequate to manage the seamless integration of the different
stakeholders and functions within NESI which are largely under differing ownerships.
This has the potential to lead to disaster and chaos in the future if not
addressed now. One of the first things required to be done is to establish an
independent expert group to ensure an holistic approach to the phased development
of NESI as it is becoming more than obvious to the blind that a "whole
System" approach is what is needed to address the challenges facing the
industry.
The
recommended steering group to address the mechanisms for whole-system
integration should be made up of a panel of technical experts from the
Transmission and Distribution Network companies, consultants, academia, NERC,
BPE, NBET, IPPs, Nigerian Gas Company, NNPC, NEMSA, MAN, data and ICT companies,
the Nigerian Electricity Consumers' forum, SON and so on who have practical
experience of electricity supply business. The aim of the expert group is to
assist in the building of an integrated perspective for the planning and
operation of the future electricity network, ensuring not only technical
performance but also the opportunities for jobs and exports (technical and
materials), identifying issues, defining the questions to be answered, clarifying
the parties accountable, obtaining synergies and highlighting areas of
relevance to national policy-making.
For
most complex systems (which electrical power system is one), there is often a
gap between those who specify what the whole system is required to achieve and
the plethora of contractors, design authorities, operators, and other technical
specialists who provide the hardware, software and other technical skills to
construct and run the many sub-systems that together form the whole. It must be
mentioned heretofore that neither the transition electricity market nor the
free electricity market alone will be able to shape the structure, supply chain
and system architecture for the provision of goods and services within the NESI.
Hence, it has to be stated that this expert group will provide the
co-ordination and the glue between established parties and new entrants, including
generators, network users and operators, to facilitate the technical operation
and the market mechanisms in a multi-party complex system like the NESI.
The new
architecture required to meet the challenges of the NESI would need to develop
a "Power System Framework" to address whole-system issues plaguing
the NESI and this can only be provided by what we will term a "System
Architect". The system architect gives a purposeful direction in the
immediate and future development of the power network infrastructure based on
defined codes, standards, and processes that enable seamless movement of
information and operational instructions. The system architect thus takes
responsibility for the correct functioning of the architecture of the whole
system.
The pertinent
question therefore is "Who or what is the System Architect?"
*NERC Chair, Sam Amadi
The
system architect is a separately defined entity that would take a whole-system
and long-term responsibility for developing and agreeing the framework of
architectures, standards, protocols, and guidelines needed to ensure seamless
technical integration of the sub-systems of the industry players and parties,
enabling a seamless response to the challenges arising from policy imperatives
as they emerge over the coming decades. This single entity will be responsible
for the management of the complexity of the evolving power system architecture
in the public interest on behalf of government. Solutions for system
integration challenges should be developed in consultation with key industry stakeholders
while considering whole-system cost-benefit across the supply chain. The system
architect would also have advisory role in providing assurance that the whole
system can meet the policy-driven technical challenges of the next two decades.
The role would involve developing functional specifications, policies,
interfaces and best practices, overseeing system integration, interpretation of
the direction of established policies by government to enable the organisations
responsible for implementation and operation to do so in a coherent manner.
Acting as a risk manager, the system architect will provide early warning of
emerging risks to system stability and advise on the feasibility and timescales
for the implementation of policies. To this end, the system architect is
limited in function to technical matters that will make the Nigerian Power
System function effectively to meet government's policy objectives while
accommodating the requirements of the markets. Of course there will be times
when effective technical integration requires attention to commercial and
regulatory frameworks, and in such times, the system architect would be
expected to identify these and work with government and other parties to
resolve them.
The
system architect in general will operate as an integration model that combines
the existing segmented functions into a single function with the overall
responsibility and ultimate accountability to the Minister of Power. For
example, the architect can extend the scope of two key existing entities- the
Grid code and Distribution code panels whose scope at the minute is limited to
operational and technical matters rather than the integration of technical,
operational and commercial aspects across the whole system. To succeed, the
panels must be constituted to address structural and technical constraints
jeopardising the successful development of the NESI with a clear focus spanning
the whole system - generation, transmission, distribution, consumer, and
related information flows.
NERC
too should ensure the integrity of the underlying systems engineering while
keeping its focus on commercial and economic levels. The activities of the Association
of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED) and Nigerian Electricity Consumers
Advocacy Network (NECAN) forum need to be strengthened to realise the
objectives of the power system. It is believed that the integration and
management of data and ICT will present further challenges despite the goodwill
or commitment of stakeholders and expertise of individuals involved if there is
no adequate legal personality or party that will be accountable for ensuring
the functionality of the increasingly complex system. Overall, there is a
highly fragmented institutional landscape today that maintains and develop the codes
which govern the operation of different aspects of the system, but none of
which takes a whole-system view. This needs to be addressed urgently.
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