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Sagging cables, fears of hackers, and practical innovation. We cover a wide range of topics in our conversation with Marnick Huijsman, Team Lead in TenneT’s Digital &amp; Process Excellence department. The grid operator is active in the Netherlands and Germany and is headquartered in Arnhem. “We’re not just focused on the day after tomorrow—we’re also focused on today.”<img src="https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/ia_Ogu_H5j8_ISL_Lxy_TD_6r_Ot_P27_L9y_D0k_Ie_E_Nemm28a_a53c14c964.jpeg" alt="iaOguH5j8ISLLxyTD6rOtP27L9yD0kIeENemm28a.jpeg" srcset="https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/thumbnail_ia_Ogu_H5j8_ISL_Lxy_TD_6r_Ot_P27_L9y_D0k_Ie_E_Nemm28a_a53c14c964.jpeg 234w,https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/small_ia_Ogu_H5j8_ISL_Lxy_TD_6r_Ot_P27_L9y_D0k_Ie_E_Nemm28a_a53c14c964.jpeg 500w,https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/medium_ia_Ogu_H5j8_ISL_Lxy_TD_6r_Ot_P27_L9y_D0k_Ie_E_Nemm28a_a53c14c964.jpeg 750w,https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/large_ia_Ogu_H5j8_ISL_Lxy_TD_6r_Ot_P27_L9y_D0k_Ie_E_Nemm28a_a53c14c964.jpeg 1000w," sizes="100vw" width="1200" height="800">“Artificial Intelligence is playing an increasingly important role for us,” says Huijsman. “It has to, because of the energy transition. That’s creating a whole new situation and many new challenges. Our work was already complex, and we often undertake projects with a duration of up to ten years, but the energy transition is making it even more unpredictable.”<blockquote>Until now, the energy supply has been regulated based on demand, but we’re moving toward a situation where demand must be aligned with supply. </blockquote>With the closure of the old power plants, that supply is no longer sufficient or continuous—wind and solar energy aren’t always available. Moreover, the energy transition has caused demand for our services to skyrocket, with the connection of all those solar farms and wind turbines. In short: these are interesting times.”<h2>Manual Checks</h2>Artificial intelligence, data analysis, and data science can help with asset management and predictive maintenance, according to Huijsman. “Some assets—such as circuit breakers, isolators, and transformers—simply break down from time to time. Many quality checks are still performed manually, which takes up a lot of time from people we desperately need to expand the grid. We’re exploring how we can use smart technology to gain insight into the condition of those assets, so we can predict the likelihood of failure and perform maintenance in a much more targeted way. Right now, this basically boils down to distinguishing between good and bad assets on an annual basis. Our goal is to be able to say: “This specific component needs to be replaced now, because it will very likely fail in three weeks.”“To make that possible, we need much more data that provides insight into the current condition of the assets. Sensor data is indispensable for this. Many assets are already equipped with sensors for grid control and security. However, these are completely isolated from the outside world. That’s because people are terrified of hackers. We’re therefore going to share such sensitive fault data via a laser diode. This ensures that information can only travel in one direction, so the system cannot be used to gain access to the network. We expect to implement this in the coming year. In that regard, the application of AI is now in full swing at TenneT.”<h2>Control Room</h2>This also applies in the control room, the beating heart of the energy supply, where operators ensure that the country’s energy balance remains stable. That’s how the lights stay on for everyone. “There, too, you can see that the energy transition is having a major impact. Energy flows are becoming more volatile, and we have to intervene more and more. Power has to be rerouted, or we have to ask customers to temporarily reduce their usage in exchange for compensation, because otherwise the grid will become overloaded. This is happening more and more often, and regulation will become more complex and require a speed that exceeds what a human can handle. That’s why we’re working on the Control Room of the Future, where we combine the best of human and computer capabilities. Technology will initially provide decision support: the system that suggests certain actions. And it will ultimately move toward a certain level of automation.”The smart use of data was born out of necessity, but it also creates new opportunities.<blockquote> For example, by combining more data, we can make better use of existing power grids. </blockquote>Here’s why. “For the power lines everyone recognizes in the landscape, the more current that flows through them, the warmer the line gets, causing it to sag more. Of course, there’s a limit to this: you don’t want the power line hanging on the ground, nor do you want it ten meters above the ground. But the amount of current that causes a cable to sag too much differs between summer and winter. Cold and windy weather causes such a line to cool down much faster, so more current can flow through it before it becomes too heavy. And it’s precisely on cold days that we need more power. In other words: by factoring weather information into how power is distributed across the grid, we can make better use of the grid. This way, the grid is becoming a little smarter all the time.”“A global competition is being organized to encourage control operators to develop these kinds of applications. All kinds of universities are participating, as well as, for example, Google and organizations from China. Using a simulated network, they’re assessing the current state of the technology and testing various innovations. We, however, aren’t waiting for all of that to be fully developed; instead, we’re looking at which components we can apply right now—we call that practical innovation. Testing in real-life situations remains essential. These kinds of developments must prove themselves in practice; only then can you build the trust that’s needed.”<img src="https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/0y_R_Yo_Z_Hvkcq_L_Bz_Ue_Y_Yy1_JD_9m1r3g_Bwx_Tm_G0_O1_R_Ya_a903ef2945.jpeg" alt="0yRYoZHvkcqLBzUeYYy1JD9m1r3gBwxTmG0O1RYa.jpeg" srcset="https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/thumbnail_0y_R_Yo_Z_Hvkcq_L_Bz_Ue_Y_Yy1_JD_9m1r3g_Bwx_Tm_G0_O1_R_Ya_a903ef2945.jpeg 234w,https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/small_0y_R_Yo_Z_Hvkcq_L_Bz_Ue_Y_Yy1_JD_9m1r3g_Bwx_Tm_G0_O1_R_Ya_a903ef2945.jpeg 500w,https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/medium_0y_R_Yo_Z_Hvkcq_L_Bz_Ue_Y_Yy1_JD_9m1r3g_Bwx_Tm_G0_O1_R_Ya_a903ef2945.jpeg 750w,https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/large_0y_R_Yo_Z_Hvkcq_L_Bz_Ue_Y_Yy1_JD_9m1r3g_Bwx_Tm_G0_O1_R_Ya_a903ef2945.jpeg 1000w," sizes="100vw" width="1200" height="800"><h2>Research</h2>An AI Center of Excellence is driving AI developments across TenneT. “Through best practices, training, and education. We collaborate with partners such as Radboud University and TU Delft. That’s essential; with a ‘Control Room of the Future,’ you’re dealing with fundamental challenges and uncertainties that lie on the research side. We don’t have the knowledge or ambition to solve all of that on our own. We also collaborate extensively with the French grid operator RTE: they conduct research, and we make it practically applicable. So when it comes to AI, we’re not just focused on the day after tomorrow, but also on today.”According to Huijsman, the willingness to work with AI is definitely on the rise. “Through proof-of-concept projects, we make it tangible and test its applicability in real-world work situations. That’s often the moment when users’ attitudes shift from caution to enthusiasm. We also try to explain AI as clearly as possible, which is crucial for acceptance. AI sounds trendy and fancy, of course, but ultimately it’s just a computer performing calculations.”According to Huijsman, this applies not only within TenneT. <blockquote>The challenge of the energy transition affects all grid operators. In that regard, we’re well represented here in the region. </blockquote>“It’s important to show that this is a place where you can put your AI talent to use, even in the energy sector. You don’t have to head west for that; as an AI student or recent graduate, you can do some really exciting things in the eastern Netherlands.”Would you like to learn more about AI applications in the energy sector, or about developments at TenneT? Please contact us via our contact form.

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Sagging cables, fears of hackers, and practical innovation. We cover a wide range of topics in our conversation with Marnick Huijsman, Team Lead in TenneT’s Digital &amp; Process Excellence department. The grid operator is active in the Netherlands and Germany and is headquartered in Arnhem. “We’re not just focused on the day after tomorrow—we’re also focused on today.”