Henan Xuchang: Power Lines Undergo “Zero-Perception” Upgrade, Power Grid Achieves Sub-Second “Self-Healing”

Live-line operations were recently conducted by teams from Xuchang Power Supply Company at Pole 13 of the 10 kV Jirong Line Tiedong Branch in Henan Province. A straight pole was converted into a tension pole under load, and smart devices—including integrated primary-secondary pole-mounted vacuum circuit breakers, high-voltage disconnectors, and surge arresters—were installed. This initiative forms part of the company’s drive to enhance “self-healing” capabilities in distribution networks and develop a cutting-edge power distribution system.

“We used live-line trucks to upgrade the pole-mounted vacuum circuit breakers, and we got the connections back up without cutting power to anyone,” said Yayong Niu, head of the live-line operations team. “The whole smart upgrade for the pole-mounted switches only took six hours, and we kept the lines running smoothly the entire time.”

Since the start of 2025, planning for upgrades to county-level smart distribution systems has been proactively advanced by Xuchang Power Supply Company. A dedicated task force was established to address lines lacking self-healing capabilities. When formulating “one-line, one-plan” renovation strategies, factors such as route layout, load distribution, operating conditions, construction feasibility, and outage impact were meticulously evaluated. For tasks requiring outages, the principle of “one outage, multiple tasks” was strictly adhered to—with all necessary maintenance completed during a single shutdown. Live-line operations were prioritized whenever feasible, and advanced technology was leveraged to minimize service disruptions.

“Back in the day, when a line tripped, we had to check every inch by hand—total time-waster, and it ate up so much manpower,” said Zhiye Liu, director of operations and maintenance at Changge Power Supply. “Now, with self-healing tech, the system spots and fixes faults on its own—cuts down power restoration time like crazy. These smart lines find problems, isolate them, and get power back to unaffected areas in seconds, so communities keep running without a hitch.”

To date, 155 sets of integrated primary-secondary pole-mounted circuit breaker devices have been installed in the Changge area by Xuchang Power. Forty-eight lines have been upgraded under the new distribution system initiative, and 64 fully automated feeder automation (FA) lines have been added to pilot projects. Full self-healing capabilities have been achieved for all pilot lines across the city, with single-fault recovery times reduced from “hour-level” to “second-level”—laying a robust foundation for the power grid to handle peak load periods seamlessly.

In the next phase, a resilient, AI-powered smart grid will be developed as the company’s strategic priority. The expansion of “self-healing” power grid infrastructure will be accelerated, with full coverage gradually achieved from initial pilot deployments.(By Yongsheng Jiao, Nannan Liu)