Proven delivery models for led public lighting : super-ESCO delivery model in Vizag, India

Vizag at night is illuminated with 91,000 streetlights that are owned by GVMC. Before Cyclone Hudhud, most of the streetlights used high-pressure sodium-vapor (HPS) or tubular fluorescent lamp (TFLs) technologies. Within GVMC’s jurisdiction, there are 8 zones made up of 72 wards and approximately 4,000 manual points to switch the streetlights on and off. Maintenance was outsourced, with operation and replacement of streetlights handled through a dedicated customer care service center. Registered complaints were forwarded to the assistant engineer of the respective ward or zone and generally addressed within 72 hours. The replacement of HPS and TFL lamps with LED lamps resulted in energy savings of more than 50 percent, along with improvements in road illumination levels. In addition, a central control and monitoring system (CCMS) has been installed that controls the LED streetlights remotely, reduces the time for fault detection, and provides better control of switching and dimming to reduce energy consumption. The CCMS in Vizag is a ‘smart’ system, with information on each light available to be viewed and reported easily via a web-based tool. Vizag also uses the CCMS to measure energy savings, providing the municipality with much more information than they had previously about the energy consumption of their streetlights.