Contributing to the Indian government's Smart Cities Mission, technology leader ABB India today signed a memorandum of understanding with the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IITR) for technical cooperation to construct an operational smart electricity distribution network and management system (SDNMS) in its campus. The agreement also includes the creation of a Smart Grids Resource Centre and joint R&D facilities in the field of efficient power generation and distribution with a focus on clean energy over the next five years, said an ABB statement. 
 
Since India, the world’s third largest consumer of electricity, is working to transform its urban energy infrastructure to make it more citizen friendly and sustainable, as cost-effective smart distribution system has the potential to significantly reduce India’s carbon footprint, the statement said. 
 
"ABB has a strong relationship with India, having collaborated on several projects over many decades. Our agreement with IIT Roorkee strengthens ABB’s mission to nurture innovative thinking that helps people lead better lives,” said Sanjeev Sharma, Managing Director, ABB India. 
 
Further, he added, “The project signed today serves as a proof of concept of using smart grids and intelligent automation to efficiently manage power distribution. It would make India’s vision of power to all a reality and ultimately realize ABB’s goal of building technology that runs the world without consuming the earth.” 
 
IIT Roorkee has been doing pioneering work to build a more eco-friendly campus using renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind and biomass for power generation and utilization. ABB has a strong portfolio of products for the integration, distribution and automation of interconnected renewable energy sources that form local distribution grids.
 
Speaking about the MoU, Prof. Ajit Chaturvedi, Director, IIT Roorkee, said, “ Concern for sustainability has always driven all major campus development related activities of IIT Roorkee, making us one of the pioneers in this space. IIT Roorkee has been harnessing solar energy not only for electricity generation but also for providing direct hot water to all its hostels and residences in the campus, and also carries out solar based cooking in the hostels.”
 
“The smart energy management and distribution agreement with ABB takes us many steps closer to creating a 100 percent green campus and achieving zero carbon dioxide emission in the long run,” Prof Chaturvedi added. 
 
IIT Roorkee and ABB will collaborate in assimilating various supply and demand side equipment, devices and systems into an automated and hybrid energy distribution and management system for the campus. 
 
The integrated system will offer more power resilience, lower costs due to reduced dependency on electricity sourced from the government utility and diesel generators.

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