M A I N   N E W S

USA turns to India on power cuts!
Prasun Sonwalkar

London, August 30
Believe it or not, the USA is seeking India’s advice on managing electricity blackouts.

There was a major power failure in north-east America this month, while London was plunged into chaos on Thursday night following failure in the national grid.

The Financial Times reported on Saturday that India “is a world leader in managing power blackouts”.

It quoted former US Energy Secretary Bill Richardson as saying: “We’re the world’s greatest superpower but we have a third world electricity grid.”

A delegation of American energy regulators has reportedly turned to India for help.

The report quoted R.P. Singh, chairman of India’s Power Grid Corporation, as saying the USA could learn two things:

First, do not rely on automation; India, for example, has engineers in charge of load distribution 24 hours a day.

Second, transmission and load management functions should be housed in the same place. “This way you can respond instantly to any problem,” said Singh.

Said William Massey, Commissioner of the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, who was on a visit to India that was scheduled before the US blackout: “I have learned a lot from my Indian counterparts.”

“We have discovered that India and the US share a lot, including ensuring the grid is reliable and there is sufficient capacity on it.” — IANS