Saudi ARAMCO's efforts in smart grid

Due to the population growth and grid expansion to rural areas, the demand in Saudi electricity network is rapidly increasing. Consequently, the daily consumption of fossil fuels used to generate electricity is booming at an alarming rate. This has motivated the Saudi decision makers to explore different alternatives so as to improve energy efficiency and reliability both from the generation and demand sides. This paper gives an overview of the efforts taken by Saudi ARAMCO in this regard. These efforts include: (a) Implementation of new substation automation system based on the innovative IEC 61850 standards, and (b) Exploring options for the integration of renewable energy sources. These efforts will eventually culminate into the concept of smart grid to improve energy efficiency, reliability and cost effectiveness for the industrial sector.