i-DE brings its facilities closer to higher VET students in electricity in Benavente

• These initiatives are aimed at promoting and raising awareness of the company's activity among future professionals in the sector.

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A group of 10 students in their second year of the Higher VET programme in Electricity at Los Sauces Secondary School visited the Benavente transformer substation of i-DE, Iberdrola España's distribution company. This substation is located in the town of the same name in the province of Zamora.

The Benavente substation has four transformers, two of 30 megavolt amperes (MVA) each, which transform the very high voltage (132 kilowatts) into high voltage (45 kV). The substation supplies energy to a regional high voltage network which interconnects with León and Zamora, feeding the nearest distribution substations such as Ventosa, Sitrama, Losacio, Villaquejida and Villalpando, as well as significant industrial customers in the Benavente area.

In addition, two other transformers of 10 megavolt amperes (MVA) and 25 MVA, which transform high voltage into medium voltage, provide electricity through eight lines to the medium voltage network to the population of Benavente, and surrounding municipalities. For example, Santa Cristina de la Polvorosa, Manganeses, Morales, San Cristóbal, Castrogonzalo and Castropepe, among others.

The Benavente substation currently supplies electricity to over 30,000 customers from the high-voltage grid to the distribution substations, and to almost 18,000 customers from the medium-voltage grid.

During the visit, the students received a masterclass given by the head of i-DE's UTS León - Zamora Gregorio Grande, who explained the operation of the different substation equipment, auxiliary services, control, protections and transformers, as well as all aspects related to maintenance and the environment.

Grande, accompanied by the auxiliary substation technician Javier Codesal showed the students at the Benavente substation the criteria to follow to identify an electrical installation, its topology, basic concepts in electricity, the effects of current on the human body and other aspects related to occupational safety. 

The aim of the visit was to provide the students with a technical overview of a substation, as well as to learn about maintenance and safety operations and work organisation, in order to promote and raise awareness of the company's activity among future professionals in the sector. The students were also able to ask doubts about the operation of the facility, which is owned by Iberdrola España.

i-DE closes the year with its best value for quality of service

i-DE, Iberdrola España's distribution company, closed 2023 in Castilla y León with the best historical value for its quality of service, as the supply interruption time was below 40 minutes. The company manages over 50,000 kilometres of power lines and has 15,697 transformer stations in service and 246 substations.

In recent years, the company has undertaken an "ambitious" plan to digitalise its electricity grids, converting its more than 1.5 million meters in the community and the infrastructure that supports them into smart meters, as well as incorporating remote management, supervision and automation capabilities.

The digitisation of the electricity distribution grid will allow for more information to implement additional energy efficiency and sustainability measures, in a way that is committed to ambitious and urgent climate action. The deployment of smart grids makes it possible to respond to new models of grid use and offer a better service to citizens.

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