India’s largest private developer of independent transmission systems, Sterlite Grid and Finland’s leading UAV solutions provider, Sharper Shape, have entered into a strategic partnership to deliver cutting-edge UAV technologies for the power transmission industry. The alliance will provide business solutions to transmission line operators and help them in reducing delivery time of projects, and increase the uptime of power systems.
On February 14, Pravin Agarwal, Chairman, Sterlite Power Grid Ventures, and Samuel Salmenlinna, Chairman, Shaper Shape, signed the partnership agreement in the presence of the Prime Minister of Finland, Juha Sipilä in Mumbai.
Elaborating on the partnership, Pratik Agarwal, Vice Chairman, Sterlite Power Grid Ventures said, “We are glad to have partnered with the company that has done pioneering work in utilizing drones for infrastructure projects. India has a tremendous requirement to improve the construction-speed, and operating-efficiency of transmission systems. This partnership will play a critical role towards meeting that need.”
Samuel Salmenlinna, said, “We are glad to have found a partner in Sterlite Grid that has been instrumental in bringing globally proven technologies to the field of transmission projects. We are confident that our partnership will add tremendous value to the Indian Power sector and we will play our role in delivering 24X7 power for all.”
“I’m happy to see Finnish technology being applied in the Indian market”, said JuhaSipilä, the Prime Minister of Finland, “This agreement is a good example of the business activity between Finland and India”, Sipilä continued.
Sterlite Grid’s role in this alliance would involve setting up operations in India involving all customer-facing activities. The technology provider, Sharper Shape would offer software solutions, technical know-how and capabilities required to fulfill the scope of the work.
Today, Indian Power Transmission sector is facing serious challenges in terms of overburdened network, execution delays and high T&D losses. Sterlite has been at the forefront of introducing new technologies to the power delivery sector. It was the first to introduce helicopter-aided construction, LiDAR-based route inspection, and was also the first private company to commission a transmission project ahead of schedule.
This partnership would help by eliminating manual inspections which take a lot of time and offer very low accuracy. UAVs offer timely information from remote places which are inaccessible through manual methods, thereby making operations & maintenance more efficient and reducingtechnical losses. To ensure uninterrupted electricity for all, UAVs can play a critical role in preventing breakdowns by offering predictive analytics.
About Sterlite Grid
Sterlite Power Grid Ventures Limited is a subsidiary of Pune-headquartered Sterlite Technologies Limited. Sterlite Power Grid Ventures Limited was established in 2010 with the intention of setting up high quality transmission line projects in India. In a short span, Sterlite Grid has built a strong portfolio of eight projects spanning nearly 6,000 Circuit Km, entailing an investment of ~ Rs 10,000 crore (USD 1.8 billion). The company is known for its pioneering work in inducting aerial technologies such as UAV and LiDAR based Surveys and Heli-Stringing for transmission project execution in India.
About Sharper Shape
Sharper Shape is a world-leading supplier of UAV based asset management solutions for utilities. Sharper Shape provides fully automated inspection and maintenance planning services for infrastructure asset owners. The solution is the world’s first automatic asset inspection solution utilizing UAVs, which drastically reduces inspection and maintenance costs for high value assets such as power lines, pipelines, railways and more. We provide actionable plans for both, the financial decision-makers to help with budgeting and resource allocation, and for engineering in planning and placing work orders for asset maintenance and vegetation management.
Source: Press Release