Greentech Lead Philippines: Manila Electric Company
(Meralco), an electrical power distributor in the Philippines, announced
partnership with Cisco to provide reliable computing and networking infrastructure
as a foundation for operations on a smart grid.
The partnership focuses on enhancing automation and
intelligence at critical points within the Meralco network, which will enable
the company to achieve higher efficiency in utility operations and deliver
better services to customers.
“Legacy grid infrastructure, rising power generation
costs and emerging technologies are driving the company to pursue a new and
more intelligent distribution network. We needed an IT infrastructure that is
robust, flexible, and highly secure yet cost-effective,” said Marthyn Cuan,
Meralco’s vice president and chief information officer.
At the core of the smart grid transformation is the use
of intelligent communication networks as the platform that enables grid instrumentation,
analysis, and control of utility operations from power generation to trading,
to transmission and distribution, and to retail.
Cisco’s Connected Grid portfolio includes
industry-leading networking equipment, computing platforms, integrated software
services and professional services that cover the spectrum of functional
requirements for a scalable, reliable and highly secure smart grid.
The products span the different segments of the grid from
the generation facility infrastructure to the data center to the smart meters,
creating a true end-to-end, converged and interoperable solution.
“We are excited to collaborate with innovative
industry leaders like Meralco, who are pioneering the way energy utilities are
driving new service models,” said Stephen Misa, managing director for Cisco in
the Philippines. “Cisco is in a unique position to help lead energy
organizations make the transformation to smart grids.”
Itron and Cisco launch Smart Grid platform
Earlier this year Cisco collaborated with Itron to launch
their next-generation smart grid platform. The new smart grid platform is
expected to create secure, scalable and multi-service IPv6-based communications
architecture.