Solutions for enhanced power consumption

Our electrical franchise in the country is also starting to establish itself in a very dynamic market, so we are very encouraged by what we’re seeing in terms of the current challenges and opportunities.
Uday Yadav, President and Chief Operating Officer – Electrical Sector, Eaton

In a discussion, Uday Yadav, President and Chief Operating Officer – Electrical Sector, Eaton and Syed Sajjadh Ali, Managing Director – ES India (APAC Region), Eaton Power Quality Pvt. Ltd. talks about plans to help the small-scale industries by providing better and safer solutions for electricity consumption to reduce leakages and pilferage.

How do you see your company’s position in the Indian market?
Eaton is a $21.6-billion global company with 101,000 people. Our vision is to improve the quality of life and the environment through the provision of management technologies as well as products and services. We further look to grow in different parts of the world, and we have a good presence here in India. We’ve localised production as well. Our investments in India have been going on for many years, and currently, we have about 5,500 employees here. We have a very large innovation centre here, spreading across almost 390,000 square feet, with almost 2,000 engineers working on building capacity. Our electrical business in the country is also starting to establish itself in a very dynamic market, so we are very encouraged by what we’re seeing in terms of the current challenges and opportunities. We’re expanding our electrical facilities quite significantly. So, the opportunities here are good and our company is very committed to growth. We’re starting to establish ourselves in a very progressive and thoughtful way.

What are the areas where you see potential for expansion in the power sector?
In India particularly, there has been tremendous progress over the last couple of decades, and beyond just putting infrastructure in place and getting connections where possible, there are so many opportunities. However, there’s still a long way to go. One of the two big challenges today is that there’s a lot of power leakage taking place, so the delivery of power must still be worked on. The country is installing more underground cables, and we too are working on similar lines. The other challenge is the reliability of power.

What is your view on market DISCOMs adopting technology as a serious aspect of distribution?
There are different dynamics involved in the business model of DISCOMs. One has to realise and respect that and find ways of helping them. When you think about the intermittency of power and the advent of renewable power, that’s changing the whole dynamic of the grid. So where Eaton can really help is to plan that grid out, as we have intelligent software to do that. We provide this solution across the world, so we are trying to do it here as well effectively. We believe in sustainability, and one of the big challenges for the industry is in switchgears relating to the SF6 gas. We can share with the utilities our approach to providing products which are SF6-free. We are one of the few companies in the world who have these products out in the marketplace.

Mounting financial losses and operational inefficiencies are some of the problems faced by State DISCOMs, along with low fuel availability. What can be done to resolve them?
Everyone wants to participate and support the Indian ecosystem. There are two ways of boosting the opportunities here. One is localising to the extent that we can, and we’ve been progressively doing that. We also have good capability in certain countries in the world where we enjoy good volume and scale that we think we can bring in to India. We can then work on scaling and localisation further. A tough challenge is in articulating value. One has to understand the total cost of ownership, which is not easy to do as it depends on the customer. If they only look at the price always, that can be really challenging. But if they look at the total cost of ownership, it’s a win-win for everybody.

What proposal will you make for investments in technology upgradation in the market?
As one of the big players and a major supplier in the industry, we have to be cognisant and respectful of the conditions in local markets. So you have to tailor your solutions for that market in exactly those conditions. It can’t be a one-size-fits-all approach; we have very clear strategies and we know what kind of high technology the market needs that can result in optimisation of power. We adopt a very clear, strategic approach in our operations across the world, whether it’s in India or China or Brazil or anywhere else. We understand how to approach different markets. Here, our job is to help the utilities and help improve the country’s economy. So, we are carefully strategising on how to approach the market and do that.

In 2019, India reached a generation capacity of 365 GW. Since then, access and transition are buzzwords for the energy sector. How do you think the per capita consumption of electricity can be increased?
We want to do everything we can as a company that participates in this industry, particularly in India, to be part of ensuring that every Indian citizen has complete access to power wherever they are in India. We’re part of the ecosystem, and we want to do everything we can to support that. Having electrical power is as important as having water. We will do everything possible to support the establishment of smart cities, as well as providing power access to remote areas in India that don’t have access today or have access but don’t have high-quality, reliable power. It’s not just about delivering power; it’s about delivering power safely and efficiently. There are significant challenges with buyers, but we are ready to face that. And we have a great track record of safety as well.

How do your products and solutions assist power leakage?
There are two dimensions here. One is effectively helping the utilities and DISCOM plan capacity and manage the flow of electricity in different areas. We do this very well with one of the leading software programs of that kind in North America. For example, software is translatable anywhere, so we can help with its planning when it comes to the leakage itself, as and when the country moves to more underground deployment of power. We have ring main unit products that are designed to work underground. That’s one of the products we’re localising here in India. We have differentiating products: never before has anyone worried about leakage current in India. There is a regulation that a power connection can be given only when one has an affiliate circuit breaker of the system. But, practically nobody follows that. So, we are trying to educate the need to upgrade the electrical circuit to protect your life and reduce the consumption of electricity. India has surplus power, but power doesn’t reach everywhere as there is pilferage or leakage. These issues have to be addressed through engineering controls. Our products are the right solution for this.

India has surplus power, but power doesn’t reach everywhere as there is pilferage or leakage. These issues have to be addressed through engineering controls.
Syed Sajjadh Ali, Managing Director – ES India (APAC Region), Eaton Power Quality Pvt. Ltd.