A Report on POWERCON2008 & 2008 IEEE Power India Conference

A quick look summarily at what happened in IEEE PES Asia Pacific Region International Conference POWERCON2008 & 2008 IEEE Power India Conference, held at InterContinental The Grand, New Delhi, India from October 12 to 15, 2008.

First of all let me thank you all for the overwhelming support I received from you. Just to share as a part of quick reporting on the Joint Conference POWERCON2008 & 2008 IEEE Power India Conference with the theme "Technological advancements for the development of power sector", we are placing the following before you:

· What a coincidence, exactly 300 papers & 300 primary registrants.

· Sponsorship coming from Dept. of Science & Technology of Govt. of India (Gold), NTPC, Power Grid (both Silver), NDPL, Delta, & GE (all Bronze), while there were six Exhibitors displaying their products (software) in seven stalls and an international book-publisher providing hand-out in author’s kit.

· Besides from India, with accepted papers from 30 countries of China, Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, Korea, Japan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Lebanon, Australia, New Zealand, Egypt, Algeria, South Africa, UK, Germany, Russia, Sweden, Netherlands, Switzerland, Norway, Turkey, Croatia, USA, Canada, & Brazil, delegates from most of the countries could make it. However, as against large contingent expected from China and Iran, few only were present, mainly due to problem in getting visa.

• Oct 12, 2008 had 4 concurrent Tutorials by 4 Power & Energy Society Distinguished Lecturers from USA, Mr Mike M Adibi for ‘Power System Restoration’, Prof S S (Mani) Venkata for ‘The Role of Technologies, Tools and Techniques for Planning and Automation of Future Distribution Systems’, Prof Saifur Rahman for ‘New and Renewable Energy Sources’, & Dr Kalyan K Sen for ‘FACTS Controllers and their Modelling Techniques’.
• At the end of Tutorials, in the evening, Inauguration of the Conference by IEEE PES President Ms Wanda Reder, following the welcome address by the General Chair Dr Subrata Mukhopadhyay and a Video presentation on IEEE PES and India, and concluding with Vote of Thanks by Vice Chair Prof Bhim Singh.
• From Oct 13 to 15, 2008 in 12 areas, namely, Power System Analysis, Computing and Economics, Power System Models and Dynamic Performance, FACTS and HVDC, Challenges in Restructured Energy Systems, Power System Control and Operation, Power System Communication and SCADA, Power System Relaying and Protection, Energy Management System and Distribution Automation, Applications of Power Electronics and Power Quality, Distributed Generation and Renewable Energy Sources, Electrical Machines and Drives, and Utilization of Electrical Energy, 47 sessions (after cancelling one) held in all with oral presentation of 175 papers.
• Press briefing on Oct 13, 2008 afternoon on IEEE PES and what it can do for the development of Indian Power Sector vis-à-vis POWERCON2008 (refer attachments).
• Participants feedback-cum-suggestion in the Closing Session included appreciation for successful holding of POWERCON2008, holding of POWERCON2012 in New Zealand (as POWERCON2010 would be in China), next (2010) IEEE Power India Conference in Pune (Maharashtra), India, and offer from Shimla (Himachal Pradesh), India too with the support ensured from State Electricity Board, provisioning of banquet dinner, sequential tutorials instead of parallel, early availability of schedule of presentation of papers, request to Govt. for allocation of adequate fund in R & D for joint working of academicians and practicing engineers vis-à-vis implementation of Lab innovation in field, etc.

Reported by

Subrata Mukhopadhyay

General Chair, POWERCON2008

October 16, 2008