Kenya: Kenya Power Begins Installation Of Sensors To Reduce Blackouts

Kenya’s power and lighting company (Kenya Power) has begun the installation of new sensors on its power lines to detect line faults, temperature anomalies and mechanical stress in real-time, reducing outages besides improving grid performance.

The new initiative which began earlier this week is being implemented by Amotech Africa, in partnership with Megger, a global electrical test equipment manufacturer, according to a report by Capital FM.

In recent years and months, Kenyans have been treated to frequent electricity blackouts running into hours, resulting in millions of losses to businesses as well as households that rely on power for operations.

Such outages have often resulted in public outrage at the power utility firm, necessitating the need to address the problem.

“Technical teams would have to visually inspect these lines to determine where the faults originated and which portion of the line is effective. These sensors analyze the line in a very powerful way. We use built-in technology, and it will send the data via cellular communications to a central software location so that the operations team can get immediate notification that the line has gone down, and they also know where exactly to go to focus their attention,” Jackson Mwema, Sales Manager at Amotech Africa, said.

“By doing it this way, we reduce the time it takes to find these faults by, at least, 60 per cent, enabling people who are affected by power outages to now get power restoration a lot quicker,” he added.

Amotech has also lined up a five-day training programme with the Kenya Power team to ensure project sustainability.

“So, Africa is a very, very special place. It’s an amazing continent, and I really love (it). However, we are struggling with certain challenges. Electrification doesn’t reach the whole of the population on this continent,” Johan Pryra, Senior Applications Engineer at Megger, added.

“This will allow us to add more infrastructure so that power can reach more people. So, this really speaks to the heart of what we do and why we do it. And that’s why we make it. We are very honored to have partnered with KPLC.”

Source:https://energynewsafrica.com