THE supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system replacement contract for PECO Energy Co’s pipeline system in the USA has been awarded to Calgary-based Telvent, a subsidiary of Madrid, Spain-based Abengoa. The new system, which is based on Telvent’s latest SCADA technology, OASyS DNA, will replace the original system, and will monitor, control and manage PECO’s entire pipeline network.
The decision to install a new pipeline management system is part of PECO’s mandate for optimizing operations in response to a rapidly-changing business environment, and for shaping the future development of its gas-transportation business. The new installation will replace an existing SCADA Unix-based system that went into service in 1996, and the change to a Microsoft operating platform will include a suite of applications specifically designed to optimize the operations the pipeline network, which is 10,620km in length. The design of the system will also ensure maximum operational efficiency, reliability and security.
According to Manuel SÌÁnchez, Telvent’s CEO, “The new system will allow pipeline management activities to be optimized through the use of sophisticated load forecasting applications, which are integrated into the system interface with various on-line weather service providers, providing critical forecast information. In addition, the new system will provide redundancy for all SCADA operations to ensure high system availability, and reliable performance of all critical SCADA monitoring and control functions. Operation of the pipeline network will be managed from PECO Energy’s gas system control headquarters.“
Based in Philadelphia, PECO Energy is an electric and natural gas utility subsidiary of Exelon Corp serving 1.5 million electric and 456,000 natural gas customers in SE Pennsylvania. PECO’s energy-distribution and – delivery services generated $4.38 billion in revenue for Exelon in 2002,and the company is one of the largest employers and most-active corporate entities in the Greater Philadelphia Region.