The programme, which is sponsored by the European Commission’s Seventh Framework Programme, aims to help south-east European transmission system operators (TSO) — equivalent to the UK’s National Grid — integrate their infrastructure with the wider European power network.
“SEETSOC will improve the stability and security of electricity supplies in south-east Europe”
It is hoped the three-year SEETSOC (South-East European TSO Challenges) project will create greater long-term stability and security to the continent’s energy supply, and enable better forecasting of demand.
Loi Lei Lai, head of the Energy Systems Group at City, will be helping to develop technical solutions for the SEETSOC project. Some of these solutions will include load flow modelling, load forecasting, real-time substation and equipment monitoring, congestion management and renewable grid integration tools.
Lai said south-east European TSOs, which are still in the early stages of market development, are facing a number of technical hurdles that stand in the way of stabilising electricity supplies.
For instance, there has been a progressive increase in distributed generation. He added: ‘The move away from large, centralised power stations to smaller sources such as renewables or combined heat and power plants — as well as the fluctuating nature of power — pose a number of technical challenges.’
Lai said SEETSOC will also aim to help south-east European TSOs create regulatory and commercial frameworks that will help them trade power and grid services across borders and integrate the region with the rest of the European power network.
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