3-D and 5-D Sustainability Performance Assessment in Electrical Systems Designing

The industrial sector is evolving towards sustainability and energy efficiency, poising significant challenges for the planning and design of electric system due to increasing energy demand and system integration. The penetration of the renewable energy market and environmental restrictions further constrain the development of new large-scale electrical systems for both transmission and end uses. While the concept of sustainability often pertains solely to environmental aspects, a comprehensive holistic view should also encompass technical and utility aspects, as well as economic and social impacts. This forms a three-dimensional concept of sustainability. A 5-D approach also considers Reliability, Availability, Maintainability and Safety (RAMS) and social aspects as job, opportunities, public costs, public health, etc. This paper proposes a methodology for planning new electrical systems within an industrial city. It introduces an overall sustainability performance indicator to compare different solutions. General areas of expertise, each containing characteristic subsystems, will be defined. For each subsystem, a "base case" is established as the starting point for all considerations. Proposed solutions will be evaluated and compared to the base case according to specific categories. The developed tool will be operationally applied in a case study focusing on the implementation of a new smart city in the Middle East. The results will be presented through descriptive tables and graphs.