2025
Italy
Terna developed Pole-Mounted Switchgear (OMP) to strengthen grid flexibility and resilience, particularly in areas with rigid “T” junctions where traditional connections or new stations are difficult to implement. By integrating compact, remotely controlled switchgear and electrical equipment into a new innovative support, the OMP enables maintenance and fault management without disrupting entire backbone lines, ensuring network stability during climate disruptions.
Highlights
01
OMPs are already in use on 220 kV systems and are being extended to 150/132 kV networks to help reduce outage risks.
02
Multi-hazard adaptation approach which includes especially extreme cold, floods, storms, landslides, and strong winds.
03
Innovative design integrates electrical equipment into new innovative supports, minimizing footprint and easing authorization.
Main Information
The Pole-Mounted Switchgear (OMP) was designed to modernize Italy’s transmission grid by providing a flexible, intelligent solution in areas prone to outages due to rigid connections. Traditional “enter-exit” lines are difficult to implement in many regions, leading Terna to create an alternative that combines efficiency, resilience, and sustainability. This is done from a multi-hazard adaptation perspective, which prepares for especially extreme cold, floods, storms, landslides, and strong winds.
The OMP integrates a gas-insulated multifunction module (MCM) with protections and switches into the physical structure of line supports. These can be remotely monitored and controlled from central rooms, allowing maintenance or automatic maneuvers in case of faults without taking entire sections out of service. This greatly reduces outages and increases system resilience. Adoption of OMPs required new technical guidelines, safety standards, and design specifications. They are already installed on the 220 kV system and are expanding into the 150/132 kV system.
Future adaptation planning includes preventive measures such as undergrounding infrastructure, weather-resistant coatings, anti-torsional and inter-phases devices and improved vegetation management, enhanced fault locators and emergency measures for using while hazards occur, and monitoring strategies such as sensors, satellite and innovative decision support system
To assess resilience measures, Terna applies a risk-based methodology that combines climate projections from databases such as RCP, Euro-CORDEX and Copernicus Climate Change Service, vulnerability curves, and probabilistic simulations (N-k Monte Carlo).
