Overview of Distribution Business and Information Technology

Distribution of electricity is one of the largest and most extensive businesses that require attention to detail on a large scale. , you have studied about the transformation of the Indian power distribution sector.The power sector is being reformed in order to meet the increasing demand fuelled by high economic growth. The SEBs are being unbundled to introduce efficiency and modern management practices in the component sections, viz.Generation, Transmission and Distribution. It is expected that this process will lead to greater accountability. More importantly, the current thrust of reforms focuses extensively on curtailing AT&C losses, which are of an extremely high magnitude.

Studies conducted in several states and by the Central Government as well as the experiences in the advanced countries have brought to fore the significant role of Information Technology in improving the efficiency and accountability in the distribution sector. In this unit, we first present an overview of the electricity distribution business and then focus on the need for IT based interventions in the distribution business. You will study about the potential IT applications in the distribution business as well as the change management required in your organisation for the effective use of IT. In the next unit, we acquaint you with the specific applications of IT in distribution network management.