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Providing electricity, water supply and sewerage services to almost 80,000 customers across the Northern Territory, Power and Water Corporation has a commitment to it’s customers to provide reliable, uninterrupted power. Looking for a contingency plan to aid them in the event of substation equipment downtime, Power and Water Corporation contacted Schneider Electric to discuss their needs for a mobile substation. The brief was simple: supply a product which was ready-to-go, easy-to-use, safe and could be used in a variety of situations.

Solution
Schneider Electric’s NOMAD mobile substation is a solution which provides electrical distributors with a means to carry out maintenance and emergency work on substations within an existing network, while continuing to distribute power.

Designed to be deployed quickly, NOMAD mobile units come prefabricated from Schneider Electric and are permanently mounted on a quad axle-trailer with multiple transformer combinations. To allow customers to easily move the units between sites, NOMAD is designed to enable trucking on main roads without an escort and the weight of the product has been carefully calculated to comply with Traffic Authorities’ requirements.

Once onsite, a quick substation testing procedure can be implemented to ensure the integrity of the substation before connectivity. Connection is made easy using the on-board cable reel with appropriate terminations.

The mobile substations for Power and Water Corporation have been fitted out with 22kV, 630A, 31.5kA/3s Single Busbar (WSA) Switchgear as well as MiCOM 120, 121 protection relays and miniature circuit breakers. A MiCOM C434 modular bay control unit has also been installed in the substations. The C434 is designed for the control and monitoring of up to 24 electrically operated switchgear units equipped with electrical checkback signalling. During operation, the user-friendly interface promotes safe operation of the substation by preventing non-permissible switching operations. Remote control operation of the substation is another safety feature of NOMAD. The substation can be completely controlled remotely once it has been set up.

Power and Water Corporation is using one of the mobile substations, which they have called ‘Nomad B’, to support existing substations in the Darwin and rural areas to Pine Creek. Equipped with integrated onboard communication technology, this substation can be controlled and monitored by a remote operator. The first assignment of Nomad B will be Humpty Doo Zone Substation while maintenance is carried out. The mobile substation will allow maintenance work to be completed without causing power disruption to customers in the area.

The mobile substations will be joined by a mobile switch room from Schneider Electric late in 2012. This will further improve Power and Water Corporation’s contingency ability and network resilience.

Conclusion
Schneider Electric’s NOMAD mobile substations are a solution which has allowed Power and Water Corporation to reduce costs and improve electricity supply to their customers. The solution mitigates the risk in both maintenance and emergency situations.

"The Schneider Electric NOMAD mobile substations provide us greater capability and flexibility to carry out essential maintenance on our existing substations," Bertram Birk, Power and Water's General Manager Power Networks said.

"These units allow us to completely bypass affected areas, meaning our customers can continue to receive an uninterrupted supply of electricity while works are being carried out.” Wendy Minne, Vice President Schneider Electric Energy Business Unit is pleased the products are performing well.

“Our NOMAD mobile substations highlight Schneider-Electric’s ability to provide complete integrated solutions for our customers,” Wendy said.

“With our extensive product range, engineering base, project management experience and synergistic capabilities, we can provide our clients with a solution to their business problems. The mobile substation solution, which has come out of our Rocklea factory, is a solution we are particularly proud of.”