Southern California Edison’s business case for transformer online monitoring
The Southern California Edison Company (SCE) operates a fleet of 285 HV and EHV substation power transformers.
byJohn E. Skog P.E., Dmitriy Klempner P.E.
The Southern California Edison Company (SCE) operates a fleet of 285 HV and EHV substation power transformers. Failure of one of these banks can have a significant financial and operational impact. Online dissolved gas analyzers (DGA) and bushing monitors for power transformers have become increasingly popular. The decision to apply online monitoring is usually driven by the criticality of the transformer and the consequence of an unplanned outage, whether lost production at a generator or industrial site or customer minutes lost within a utility network.
Online dissolved gas analyzers (DGA) and bushing monitors for power transformers have become increasingly popular. The decision to apply online monitoring is usually driven by the criticality of the transformer and the consequence of an unplanned outage, whether lost production at a generator or industrial site or customer minutes lost within a utility network.
Application of a comprehensive online DGA and bushing monitoring strategy across Sothern California Edison’s (SCE’s) fleet of EHV and HV transformers provides technical and operational benefits to all stakeholders. A detailed business case and financial model have been developed to show that SCE’s online DGA, moisture, and bushing monitoring strategy is also economically prudent.