American firm G&W Electric is offering Teros™, its new recloser product, to Philippine power utilities so they can minimize brownouts even in adverse conditions.
According to the company, its Teros™ recloser is “capable of working with a variety of configurations in any application,” and this is a product “designed to improve system reliability and grid resiliency.”
It added that this solution, primarily for targeted distribution utilities (DUs) or electric cooperatives in the country, “provides overcurrent protection for temporary faults on overhead distribution lines and reduces long-term system outages.”
As explained by Harold J. Hirz, global product manager for overhead technologies of G&W Electric, the edge of this technology solution is its very fast-response capability during adverse conditions – that in the typical 60 cycles of response time, Teros™ would be able to do that in two cycles. Hence, he said, it would be able to operate and isolate within a fraction of a second when extreme circumstances would knock out a power system, like the hammering of strong typhoons.
The product, he noted, is also ideal for the deployment of microgrid applications – including installations of renewable energy in the system; as well as in the smart grid journey of a power system of any country.
John Mueller, chairman and owner of G&W Electric, said “to better mitigate disruption and to manage reliable electrical service, improvements made in recloser technology are imperative to ensuring a reduction in widespread power outages,” with him stressing that “today, reclosers are the critical must-have in a utility’s grid reliability.”
He qualified that “grid reliability affects everyone – all around the globe – from the average household to entire factories and telecom systems. The results are not just inconvenient but economic.”
As technically defined, reclosers are the type of switchgear being used on overhead of electricity distribution networks, primarily to detect and interrupt momentary faults.
The new Teros™ recloser, according to G&W Electric, “offers a wide range of benefits and fits most configurations, despite a wide variance of requirements from country to country,” adding that the technology does not require oil or gas insulation and it “eliminates the need for routine maintenance and improves personnel safety.”
The American firm similarly emphasized that “Teros™ has been field-tested for reliable load switching and overcurrent protection,” adding that if a power utility is “looking to improve or expand grid systems, the Teros™ offers utilities site-ready designs for new and existing electrical systems.”
G&W Electric has established its business foothold in the Philippine market for roughly 20 years already -- and it has been a provider of products and solutions to major distribution utilities such as the Manila Electric Company (Meralo), Visayan Electric Company (VECO) and electric cooperatives.
“As G&W Electric continues to innovate products for utilities of all sizes, we look forward to working more closely with electric coops towards their shift to smart grids,” said Enriko Camacho, regional sales manager – Asia Pacific North of the company.
Giin Sia, regional vice president of Asia Pacific of G&W, further conveyed that “Teros™ comes at an opportune time when countries like the Philippines set their sights on post-pandemic recovery,” with him pointing out that “reliable energy is the lifeblood of any economy, so the Philippines needs to ensure that utilities of every size have automated equipment to protect infrastructure and minimize long power outages.”