LV network monitoring and creating a future-ready energy network

Electric vehicles (EVs), heat pumps and solar panels are all on the rise, meaning an increased reliance on LV networks, and more costly results if they fail.

Eurelectric’s Grids for Speed report shows that within 25 years the electrical network as a whole will see a 60% increase in peak demand, and at the same time, 90% of the LV grid will become over 40 years old. This is a challenge widely acknowledged by Europe’s DSOs and an issue they are committed to addressing.

To do this, the industry needs to double its investment by 2050 to get their LV networks future ready. This will involve 5.5 million km of LV cables spanning the continent – enough to circumnavigate the globe 137 times.

Costs of not monitoring

By investing in LV monitoring technology, network owners and operators can get a clearer picture of network health, whilst the grid edge intelligence empowers smart network investment decisions.

The common ‘repair upon failure’ approach, only fixing LV networks when they break, becomes a reactive and costly strategy as reliance on these networks increases, and consequently impacts the system average interruption duration index (SAIDI). When any repairs are undertaken, local urban areas face disruption.

Monitoring can also act as a way for DSOs to understand their network better, identifying areas that regularly reach their capacity or struggle with grid congestion, or which sections of the grid are seeing more off-peak usage as a result of low carbon technology.

With this level of data comes better insight as to what’s going on with the network, giving DSOs the opportunity to adopt a proactive approach to grid management. With real-time visibility into LV cable conditions, load behaviour, voltage levels, harmonics and pre-fault detection, DSOs can actively predict the areas of the network that are most in need of investment.

With all this information, DSOs can reduce unplanned service interruptions to LV cables, optimise LV reinforcement investments, and streamline operational resource allocation – all of which saves time and money, and importantly, doesn’t impact network uptime.

Proven technology

Whilst Europe’s DSOs may all be at different stages of the LV monitoring journey, the technology has been tried and deployed at scale in the UK, and the learnings are applicable in every state.

Over the past five years, DNOs across the UK have implemented the VisNet Hub – an advanced grid edge computing device placed at the heart of over 150,000 LV circuits nationwide, ensuring 19 million people receive electricity more safely, securely and reliably.

UK Power Networks (UKPN), a DNO that operates across London, the southeast and east of England, achieved a 99.9% network reliability score throughout 2024, an impressive feat due, in part, to the deployment of nearly 6,000 VisNet devices.

The VisNet Hub plays a key role in fault detection and balancing network-wide energy demand, and was one of several initiatives implemented by UKPN in 2024 to enhance network reliability and efficiency.

Luca Grella, Head of Innovation at UKPN, attributed the DNOs success and reliability to grid-edge intelligence devices, stating that “the integration of advanced technologies like VisNet monitoring devices has been key to our success. 

“These innovations not only enhance the performance of our network but also help us reduce our environmental impact and deliver better value to our customers.”

EURO LENS

We belong to the generation that will reshape the energy landscape, and with the net zero transition demanding rapid action, the industry needs to build on the strong progress it’s already been making. Many are still waiting for better regulation or better timing. In reality, there will never be the perfect time upgrade networks or begin proactively monitoring.

DSOs are the heroes of the energy transition, without them nothing happens. We need to back them, support them and move with them.

That’s why at Enlit Europe, we announced our EURO LENS programme – a year-long scheme designed for DSOs to share LV best practice and actionable insights highlighted by our grid edge reliability and capacity intelligence.

We view this as a prime opportunity for knowledge sharing. With regular learning opportunities and a bi-annual seminar, DSOs can learn from the experience of their contemporaries from across Europe. The aim is to arm DSOs with the techniques and technology to reduce faults and outages, optimise network investment decisions and better manage capacity or congestion issues on their LV network.

Ultimately, the goal is to future-proof Europe’s LV network for decades to come and bring the energy grid into the 21st century. A modern energy network needs forward thinking, actionable grid edge insights; without them, we risk crumbling under the weight of increasing demand.

If you’re a DSO and would like to participate in the EURO LENS knowledge share, then please contact [email protected].

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About VisNet

VisNet®, from EA Technology, is a pioneering business that focuses exclusively on LV management, delivering the energy network of the future. As pioneers in the field of LV management, VisNet® delivers cutting-edge solutions that provide not only real-time monitoring and pre-fault detection but advanced and reliable grid modelling tools and automation of network connection requests. VisNet’s solutions improve resilience for new and existing LV networks and enhance the customer experience by giving visibility through powerful insights propelling the evolution of energy infrastructures around the world.

Originating in 1966 as a groundbreaking research and development organisation serving the electricity industry, EA Technology specialises in asset management solutions for electrical asset owners and operators.