Pilot project of the electric utility of the city of Zagreb - experiences

The planning and the design of the electrical supply system are everyday tasks for engineers in the electric utilities. The goal of power distribution system planning is to satisfy the growing and changing system load demand during the planning period within operational constraints and with minimal costs. The planning process comprises several phases, and one of the most important is the optimization of the electric distribution network. The network optimization is considered a hard combinatorial optimization problem due to a number of limitations (network voltage level, network structure, amounts and locations of loads, routes and types of feeders, voltage drops, etc.). An additional complexity is imposed by the geographically referenced data. In this process it is important to have on time accurate relevant data and information on the electric distribution system and its assets, and possibly to have data from other utilities. Computerization and development of various geographic information systems have opened new horizons for all decision-making processes as well as for manipulation and dissemination of information. Therefore, the electric utility of the city of Zagreb has started the GIS pilot project. This paper presents the experiences gathered through developing and conducting the pilot project of the electric utility of the city of Zagreb.