AI Helps Strengthen Grid Reliability in Remote Buryatia: Student Research Targets Real-World Grid Challenges
Innovative digital energy technologies are emerging not only from major research institutes but also from university classrooms. A graduating student at the Irkutsk National Research Technical University (IRNITU) has won PJSC Rosseti Siberia's research competition with an AI-based solution designed to improve the efficiency and reliability of electricity distribution in remote parts of Buryatia.
The project, developed by graduating student Viktor Filatov under the supervision of Vladislav Shakirov, Head of the Department of Power Supply and Electrical Engineering, addresses several operational challenges affecting specific distribution networks. In the Okinsky and Tunkinsky districts of Buryatia, 6–10 kV distribution systems face multiple constraints, including aging equipment, undersized conductor cross sections, and heavy seasonal demand, all of which contribute to unstable operating conditions at transformer substations.
Filatov developed a software platform based on advanced mathematical modeling and machine learning techniques. The system estimates the actual condition of the distribution network even when sensor data are incomplete and determines the optimal transformer tap settings. Using the new platform, dispatchers can monitor voltage levels across substations and optimize network operation.
Although the project has not yet reached the engineering development stage, it was designed from the outset to solve practical problems encountered in a functioning distribution network. Buryatenergo has already recommended the project for an interregional engineering competition. If it moves into practical deployment, residents of remote areas of Buryatia could benefit from more reliable electricity service and fewer power interruptions.
Moving Toward Pilot Deployment
Filatov's work is not intended to remain simply another competition project. He plans to enroll in the master's program at IRNITU's Institute of Energy and continue refining the software platform.
Meanwhile, Rosseti Siberia's management has expressed interest in implementing the competition's most promising technologies. The algorithms will next be validated using a large volume of operational data before pilot deployment is launched on Buryatenergo's distribution network. If successful, the software platform could be recommended for other remote grid systems across Siberia and the Russian Far East.
From Student Competition to Grid Operations
Rosseti Group began looking for promising engineering solutions in the academic community as early as 2015, when it launched its nationwide graduate thesis competition. In 2022, during the Youth Day program at Russian Energy Week, the company expanded that effort by organizing a series of engineering competitions for undergraduate and graduate students at technical universities working with Rosseti.
That strategy has already produced practical results. In 2023, the winning graduate research project by Ruslan Migranov, a doctoral researcher at Saint Petersburg Electrotechnical University "LETI," was recommended for practical deployment. Similar examples have emerged across other Rosseti Group subsidiaries.
Filatov's project therefore fits into the company's long-term digital transformation strategy, which is being implemented under Rosseti's unified technical policy.
Intelligent Grid Management Instead of Full Infrastructure Replacement
The software platform developed by the IRNITU student is more than an academic exercise. It is an applied digital solution for Russia's electric power sector. Rather than relying solely on costly physical modernization of distribution networks, which cannot be completed quickly and requires substantial capital investment, the platform uses intelligent algorithms to optimize operation of existing infrastructure and make fuller use of available grid capacity.
After further refinement, the platform could be tested on Buryatenergo's operational network and, if successful, deployed across additional Rosseti subsidiaries.
