Voltage quality improvement in distribution networks

This paper is presented by Chilectra, a subsidiary of the Endesa Group Spain and the biggest electric utility in Chile. It sets out a methodology for estimating and determining control parameters for the voltage quality to be delivered to its end customers. The methodology is able to estimate the voltage at each end customer location in the low voltage (LV) distribution network, using measurements of voltage, current and power factor in real operating conditions at the feeder substation bus bars in the medium voltage (MV) distribution network. The available information sources, the assumptions used for analysis and the partial results at each stage of the methodology are described. A case study shows the main results of the methodology: the number of end customers with voltage quality problems and the geographical location of these customers. Finally, it shows the improvement obtained as a percentage decrease in end customers subject to bad voltage quality when applying the methodology.