SYDNEY – Nov. 15, 2010 – Cisco today announced that EnergyAustralia, the largest energy network in Australia with 3 million customers, has selected Cisco® Connected Grid solutions as the infrastructure platform for the delivery of a range of business-critical services in its major substations across its electricity network.

Cisco introduced the first offerings in its Connected Grid portfolio of smart grid communications solutions in May 2010.  These solutions – purpose-built, ruggedized routers and switches - form a resilient, manageable and highly secure network solution for the utility substation to integrate Internet Protocol (IP)-based communications with the power grid for intelligent grid monitoring and control.  EnergyAustralia selected Cisco's Connected Grid solution to build the core of its smart grid infrastructure with greater security, reliability, and operational efficiency, while complying with regulatory mandates and industry standards such as IEC 61850 and supporting new energy supply sources. 

Together, the Cisco Connected Grid routers and switches will help EnergyAustralia improve the reliability of the power supply by detecting and analyzing faults quicker as well as decreasing response times. This Cisco Connected Grid solution provides a highly secure, scalable communications network to help utilities identify, isolate, diagnose and repair faults more quickly and efficiently.  The solution will also help EnergyAustralia plan and develop energy management solutions and better integrate renewable energy into the grid.

Les Williamson, Vice President of Cisco Australia and New Zealand, said: "With 25 years of building intelligent networking technology infrastructures, Cisco has the deep expertise to help utilities realise the digital transformation of the grid while maintaining their investment in existing systems. With our Connected Grid solution at the core of its substations, we look forward to helping EnergyAustralia achieve its business and operational goals to build a smarter and more reliable electricity grid."

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