Technical Loss Calculation in Distribution Grids Using Equivalent Minimum Order Networks and an Iterative Power Factor Correction Procedure

Energy losses are a fundamental issue in the electricity distribution sector, being an inevitable consequence of transporting energy from supplying sources to consumers’ installations and are becoming one of the factors to be considered in planning and operation of electrical distribution networks. So, electrical distribution losses must be continuously monitored so that they are kept within acceptable levels to ensure the business profitability as well as the good power quality of supplied energy. In this context, this work introduces a modified methodology for technical losses calculation with the application of the concept of reduced equivalent networks, via definition of an Equivalent Operational Impedance, taking as a starting point the electrical network modeling in the Open Distribution System Simulator (OpenDSS). The losses calculation also considers customer’s energy billing measurement data, measurements of injected energy and power factor at the feeder’s coupling bus at the substation, also considering measurement campaigns to characterize the load consumption profiles for working days, Saturdays and Sundays. The proposed methodology disaggregates energy injections in billed energy, technical and non-technical losses parcels, and presents, as the results have demonstrated, a good precision in the proposed calculation procedures.