Going Underground to Reduce Risk and Raise Reliability

We rely on electricity in nearly every aspect of our lives and utilities to manage the safe and reliable distribution of power to homes, communities and industrial sites, along with communications and transportation systems. Growing electric demand and frequency of severe weather conditions around the country are straining an aging infrastructure and its ability to support capacity in many areas. In the last decade, the average annual number of weather-related power outages increased by roughly 78%. When extreme events impact our electricity, restoring power cannot occur fast enough.

As electrification needs continue to evolve across residential, commercial, industrial and transportation sectors, many utilities are implementing undergrounding strategies aimed at protecting systems, increasing reliability and improving grid resiliency. In areas where wildfires are a threat, undergrounding reduces ignitions by 99%, making it one of the most effective ways to safeguard communities. For example, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is actively working to underground more powerlines and reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires through its 10,000-mile undergrounding program, the largest of its kind in the U.S.

Often part of a long-term approach to electric utility and infrastructure planning and storm hardening programs, more communities are expanding their electrical system underground to help:

- Minimize outages caused by line contact from trees, falling limbs, lightning, high winds, ice and heavy snow.

- Prevent wildfires from equipment ignition.

- Improve the environment, aesthetics, road safety of drivers and equipment security.

- Extend system lifespan and reduce maintenance.

Groundbreaking Solutions for Undergrounding

Developments in technology, equipment, insulation materials and installation methods are enabling utilities to more easily underground lines or add automation for minimal maintenance and fast recovery. While every infrastructure, reconfiguration and upgrade project is unique, it involves either converting or reusing existing structures or installing new systems and components.

Today’s more compact options can be installed through narrow passages and manholes. Utilities frequently work with ABB engineers and R&D specialists to integrate standard designs and modify products with configurable solutions that drop-in to an existing footprint or foundation. 

Advances in switchgear technology are helping distribute electricity more efficiently in power systems and greatly improve worker safety. Maintaining critical switchgear equipment presents risk for utility workers and led the ABB Installation Products’ team to continue to innovate and expand its line of Elastimold® solid dielectric molded vacuum switchgear by developing Tru-Break™ modules with a patented viewing window to visually verify the circuit is de-energized. The newest single-phase Elastimold Tru-Break module is compact, submersible and modular to allow for new installations and conditional retrofitting onto existing single-phase Elastimold molded vacuum switches (MVS), molded vacuum interrupters (MVI) and multi-way switchgear systems.