The impact of reliability indices in the process of planning radial distribution networks

The work reported in this paper covers some problems regarding radial distribution network planning. Beside the common optimization criteria (new facility installation, maintenance and operation costs), the cost of the energy not supplied caused by expected outages is introduces. The expected outage time is determined in the reliability analysis in which reliability indices SAIFI (system average interruption frequency index) and SAIDI (system average interruption duration index) are calculated. The influence of network topology and switching devices configuration on system reliability is also described. A program module has been developed as a proposal to solving the problem of radial distribution network planning in rural areas. The program module is based on Prim minimum spanning tree algorithm. It is intended to become a part of software tools collectively referred CADDiN (computer aided design of distribution networks).