On 19 November 2021, 14,000 electricity customers in Hallingdal lost power as a storm swept through the region, causing extensive damage.
That dramatic autumn day is considered the largest outage in Hallingdal Kraftnett’s history. Quant Insight and Embriq’s Min Strøm app became essential tools in bringing the situation under control.
“There’s no comparison with how things used to be”
On 19 November, Hallingdal Kraftnett put Quant Insight to the test. A storm swept through Hallingdal, causing extensive damage to the electricity grid. At its peak, 14,000 customers were without power — half of all grid customers in Hallingdal. When customers lose power, a flood of enquiries from customers and the media also needs to be handled.
Before Hallingdal Kraftnett introduced Embriq’s solutions, all customer fault reports went through the switchboard. Now, customers who use the Min Strøm app can also report faults directly through the app.
“The biggest advantage of Quant Insight is the overview it provides, which we can share with customers and anyone else who needs it,” says Knut Markegård, Finance Director at Hallingdal Kraftnett.
Hallingdal Kraftnett convened its emergency response team early that day.
“The information we obtained from Quant Insight was a tremendous help,” Markegård continues.
Sharing the available information meant that customer enquiries were far fewer than expected in a situation like this.
“Knowing who has power and who doesn’t is absolutely essential. There’s simply no comparison with how things used to be,” says Markegård.
The ultimate stress test
Shortly after Quant Insight went live, it faced the ultimate stress test. On 19 November 2021, the day the storm hit, the emergency response team was working flat out.
“The day the storm hit was a baptism of fire. We contacted Embriq’s Quant Insight team many times, and they were very responsive,” says Erlend Ranestad Eggen, System Administrator at Hallingdal Kraftnett.
With Quant Insight, Hallingdal Kraftnett could easily assess the situation and coordinate the team’s response.
“Having Embriq’s developers there to support us gave us peace of mind. It turned into a very long day,” Eggen continues.Data from smart meters also gave them a clear overview of the distribution grid, enabling them to respond to the major outage.
“It was a very positive experience. Together with Embriq, we resolved issues quickly and learned from the experience,” says Eggen.
Overall, Hallingdal Kraftnett, its customers and the media have been very satisfied with Quant Insight. The tool makes information available to a wider range of stakeholders and enables the emergency response team to monitor incidents as they unfold.
“There’s no comparison with how things used to be”
On 19 November, Hallingdal Kraftnett put Quant Insight to the test. A storm swept through Hallingdal, causing extensive damage to the electricity grid. At its peak, 14,000 customers were without power — half of all grid customers in Hallingdal. When customers lose power, a flood of enquiries from customers and the media also needs to be handled.
Before Hallingdal Kraftnett introduced Embriq’s solutions, all customer fault reports went through the switchboard. Now, customers who use the Min Strøm app can also report faults directly through the app.
“The biggest advantage of Quant Insight is the overview it provides, which we can share with customers and anyone else who needs it,” says Knut Markegård, Finance Director at Hallingdal Kraftnett.
Hallingdal Kraftnett convened its emergency response team early that day.
“The information we obtained from Quant Insight was a tremendous help,” Markegård continues.
Sharing the available information meant that customer enquiries were far fewer than expected in a situation like this.
“Knowing who has power and who doesn’t is absolutely essential. There’s simply no comparison with how things used to be,” says Markegård.
The ultimate stress test
Shortly after Quant Insight went live, it faced the ultimate stress test. On 19 November 2021, the day the storm hit, the emergency response team was working flat out.
“The day the storm hit was a baptism of fire. We contacted Embriq’s Quant Insight team many times, and they were very responsive,” says Erlend Ranestad Eggen, System Administrator at Hallingdal Kraftnett.
With Quant Insight, Hallingdal Kraftnett could easily assess the situation and coordinate the team’s response.
“Having Embriq’s developers there to support us gave us peace of mind. It turned into a very long day,” Eggen continues.Data from smart meters also gave them a clear overview of the distribution grid, enabling them to respond to the major outage.
“It was a very positive experience. Together with Embriq, we resolved issues quickly and learned from the experience,” says Eggen.
Overall, Hallingdal Kraftnett, its customers and the media have been very satisfied with Quant Insight. The tool makes information available to a wider range of stakeholders and enables the emergency response team to monitor incidents as they unfold.
Quant Insight provided the solution
Quant Insight gives Hallingdal Kraftnett visibility into 95% of its customers through direct meter readings. The solution provides extensive information and enables the company to:
- Monitor the grid during power outages or earth faults.
- View events and capacity using both real-time and historical data.
- Analyse and present current and future electricity consumption and the balance between supply and demand.
- Respond more quickly to incidents, reduce workloads and improve the handling of future incidents.
This has given Hallingdal Kraftnett a wide range of capabilities for monitoring and operating the distribution grid. “We use Quant Insight to view live data, rather than relying solely on calculated data, and to compare the two,” says Eggen. The end result is a solution tailored to Hallingdal Kraftnett’s needs.
“Since introducing Quant Insight, we have gained a completely different level of visibility and control in our dealings with both end customers and the media.”
The Min Strøm app proved invaluable during the storm
Grid customers reported faults or submitted suggestions for improvements directly through the app. “During the storm, customers used the app and the website to check the map themselves and see who had power. This significantly reduced the pressure on our switchboard,” says Markegård. “It’s also valuable for the media and the municipality’s emergency response team to have that overview. We’ve received positive feedback on this. Far more people would have called if the media and customers hadn’t been able to access the information in Min Strøm,” he continues. All distribution system operators can offer the Min Strøm app to their grid customers.
Min Strøm gives your grid customers access to information including:
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- The status of their electricity connection.
- Electricity consumption.
- Statistics.
- Spot electricity prices.
- Peak demand in relation to capacity-based grid tariffs.
- Alerts about ongoing faults.
- Planned power outages.
“During the storm, customers used Min Strøm and the website to check the map themselves and see who had power. This significantly reduced the pressure on our switchboard.”
About Hallingdal Kraftnett
Hallingdal Kraftnett AS develops, operates and maintains an electricity grid covering approximately one-third of Buskerud County — more than 5,000 km². Its licensed service area stretches over 150 km, from Krøderen in the south to Finse in the west. Its employees are on call around the clock to ensure a safe and reliable electricity supply for customers.
Hallingdal Kraftnett is a member of Nettalliansen, which entered into an agreement with Embriq in 2015 for the deployment and operation of 200,000 smart meters. Since then, many Nettalliansen members have expanded their use of Embriq’s products and services.
Om Embriq
About Embriq
Embriq AS is a Norwegian IT and technology company providing IT solutions to sectors including the energy industry. It is a leading provider of advanced managed IT services, proprietary software, industrial IoT technology and consulting services.
Embriq was established in 2009 as a spin-off from Hafslund. Today, it is owned by the British private equity firm Magnesium Capital. The company is headquartered in Bjørvika, Oslo, and has approximately 230 employees.
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