Key Issues Pertaining to Aging, Maintenance and Reliability of Electricity Infrastructure

In the context of the deregulation of the electricity market, power utilities are forced to optimize asset utilization by operating existing equipment at increasingly higher capacity levels, in some cases, exceeding nominal ratings in order to defer capital investment in installing new facilities or in refurbishing existing facilities. Thus a major focus of power utilities is to develop methods to assess the condition of expensive power equipment in order to extend the life of existing infrastructure. Life extension of equipment will be possible only through reliable diagnostic tools for condition monitoring of power equipment. This article discusses the issues relating to aging, maintenance and replacement policies leading to sustainable operation of electricity infrastructure.