Smart Grid

The smart hybrid grid is a concept that is attracting huge attention as a key technology for improving the stability of power supplies and solving global environmental problems. The smart grid illustrated above connects commercial power plants to distributed generation systems, batteries, and various kinds of industrial and private equipment installed on the sites of power consumers through communication networks. It enables new energy-saving functions not available from the conventional power networks, such as dynamic fine adjustment of power demand and supply; promotes the implementation of photovoltaic, hydro, wind power, and other renewable energies; and enables the sight of power consumption. The smart grid is now expected to also be a means of suppressing peak power demand and balancing demand and supply with frequency support service. Some operators even choose to add gas or diesel backup generation where an even higher network security of supply is specified as essential.