OP433 - ABC's of the Electrical Grid

1.5 days - 1.0 Continuing Education Units Awarded

This course offers an insight to how electricity is safely and reliably transmitted from the power plant to your neighborhood. This course offers a meaningful introduction to power transmission, operational issues, safety considerations and reliability concerns. Lawyers, consultants, public officials, media representatives and veteran energy personnel will benefit from a well rounded overview of these industry basics. Those that work in or around the power generation industry, but away from the transmission & distribution side, will gain a needed understanding of the technology.

From the power plant we entertain the identification and purpose of the step-up transformer, transmission lines, step-down transformers, and local distribution. In addition we discuss reliability issues. Why are there black-outs, what are their causes, what kind of protection is there, how well does it work, and what is new on the horizon.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:

• Employees new to the electric power industry or with limited industry experience.
• Regulators, commission staff (state and federal), attorneys, ISOs/RTOs, industry vendors and others that need a basic understanding of the 'grid'.
• Federal, state and local government officials who need to understand the 'hows' and 'whys' of power transmission.
• Local and national media personnel who need who manage communications on power transmission.
• Plant administrative and support personnel looking to augment their understanding of their industry.
• School teachers and staff (of all levels), so they can better explain these fundamentals to their students.

OBJECTIVES:
Upon completion of this course the participant will be able to:

1. Describe how the electrical grid is divided across North America.
2. Describe why transmission lines are at such high voltages.
3. Describe the different types of power that is transmitted and why it is necessary.
4. List the major components that make up the electrical grid.
5. Describe the function of those major components correctly listed above.
6. List the types of faults that typically occur on a transmission line.
7. Describe what protective actions are taken during these fault conditions.
8. Describe considerations for future needs, including the meeting of regulatory requirements.

OUTLINE

• Day One
  • Introduction
  • Purpose of Electric Grid
  • Types of Electrical Power
  • Major Components
    • Circuit Breakers
    • Step Up Transformers
    • Transmission Line
    • Switchyard
    • Distribution
• Day Two
  • Overall Design Considerations
  • Safety Issues
  • System Risk and Reliability
  • Competitive Market
  • Challenges for the Immediate Future