IT major IBM (News - Alert) announced its association with Korea Electric Power Company (KEPCO) on the building of the Total Operations Center at the Jeju Smart Grid Test-Bed Demonstration Complex.

Around160 companies and 11 consortia members operating at the Jeju Complex, world’s largest smart grid community established for smart grid research and testing, will be able to collect and manage information on all international markets.

The Total Operations Center is an addition to Korea’s Jeju Smart Grid Test-Bed project. The project will be utilized by participants to monitor smart grid systems and data exchange.

KEPCO has leveraged the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC (News - Alert)) Common Infrastructure Model (IEC CIM) for the project. IEC CIM is a comprehensive and integrated management model that can be utilized by energy and utility companies worldwide during smart grid transformations.

“Operating the smart grid involves implementing a flexible management strategy that takes into consideration the various application standards, development speeds and requirements of that particular region,” said Park Jong-man, deputy general manager at the integrated control center of KEPCO’s Jeju Demonstration Complex, in a statement.

“This collaboration with IBM allows KEPCO to create a model based on international standards, such as CIM that can be used to infuse intelligence into any smart grid infrastructure,” Jong-man added.

As part of the development of the project, IBM provided consulting services and software to develop an integrated energy management system for the Total Operations Center. IBM also helped design guidelines for IEC CIM, creating an open standard for information exchange and management across the demonstration complex.

“This collaboration with KEPCO will not only improve operational efficiencies at the complex but will also help drive the development of international standard technologies in the Korean smart grid market allowing domestic businesses to operate and compete at an international level,” said Guido Bartels, general manager of the Energy and Utilities industry at IBM and chairman of the Global Smart Grid Federation.

Recently, IBM and telecom service provider Cable&Wireless entered into an agreement to develop intelligent data and communications solution, UK Smart Energy Cloud. The UK Smart Energy Cloud will support the Smart Meter Implementation Program in the U.K.

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