2006 lEEE PES Transmission and Dis1ributioo Conference and Exposi1ion Lalin America, Venezuela
Investigation of the Relationship between Load
and Loss Factors for a Brazilian Electric Utility
M. E. de Oliveira. S111de11r Member, IE.EE. A. Padilha-Fellrin. Seuiur Member, IEEE.
and F. J. Candian
Ab>trttct- With tbt ronsidtnablt in<r'<•<e of the k>""" in
t"lttlrir otililib of de\·elopiog toun&rlo., \UC'h B\ BnuJl. th~re.
I> on in•ntigatioo fo r lo.-s <akul• tion mcthodol01:i6. .. nsid cr-
lni: holh l«hnical (inherent or lb• >).Cl'lll) •nd non ltehni<al
(••••II) •>>0<iotcd to 1hc cleet:ri<it) 1bcR) IO»<S. In l <ncral,
• II di~1ribution networks know the lo•d factor, obtained by
mrthurlng 1»tritmt·t en dir~clly front lb~ nl'.l\\clrk. Ho"C\'Cr, 1he
loss f•clor. Important for 1hc eneri:y los< co>! rakulotlon, can o nly
b(• ohlained in H laborious 'nay. Const·c.1tu!nlly_ 'lCYcrul r11rn1ul.as
hM\'C been c.h.·,·clopcd IOr obtnioinJt the tus"I furror. Gcncrntly~ '' is
u<cd che expression that relates both flu·ton. through the u~e of
II cocnic:ieot k. LttSI n:vieu s i ntrodu((' .. r•n1-1;e of r1u·tor"' \\ilhin
0.1~ - tl.30. In this work. an anaJ)'sls wilh reol llf• load cun·es
j.., presented,. determining Dt\\' \'3IU~~ for the tc•effic.ient k in a
Hne1ithtn electrk utility.
lndc~ T~rms- const•nt c°"mcltnt k, load cuntJ. 1Md fa<tor.
los.s factor.
I. INTRODlJCTIO"I
C URRENTLY, electric u1ili1ics in I.nun America and o!Jler
developing countries see Lhe considerable increase of'lhe
non-wchnical losses in their sysLcms, mainly due 10 electricity
theft. Tims, utilities need to look for more accurate tcols for
loss ca lculation. Losses in distribution syslcms arc divided in
icchnical (inherent of the sys1crn) aod non-technical losses,
also called commercial loss (associated, mainly, to the
clcc1ricity thcfl). Given thai ihc total amount of losses in a
distribution system is kno,~n. \vilh a reliable methodology for
the tcchnicul 106s calculation, ihc non-lcchnicul losses can be
ob1ained by subtraction.
One way lO com:c1 the loss value would be 10 p06Sess a
dalab:tse "ith all the individual customers' curves, w:1icb in
prnc1ice is nm viable due to technical and economic issues.
Thus, in time to time lhe companies look for updatirg lheir
loads curves by measurements campaigns using cu>tomers
smnpling, ob1aining a characteristic curve for each cOJsumcr
class.
Other imp0r1ant data for lhc corrccl measurement of losses
in disLribution networks are 1he load lltclor and the loss fuctor,
This proj~l \li'aS jXt.nfally SUpJ'Ortcd by ELl!KTRO l!ltr.1ri1,;idad~ \.\ Scn:i~os
S.A The first :rnthor 1.1.Toold like 10 lhank th~ FAPESP ("rnnl nu. 04/C44004).
•nd !he $C'COnd ai11hor 10 1hc (,"NPq (grunl n<> ~7J108/200•1-6) (or their
tlnw1.ndllll Qltlpun.
M E. Oli\-·t'in and A. Padalh3·fcltnn arc wuh UNvtrs1Wde Endaal
P>vl1SI• tUNESP). llba Sdtcn, SP, 9,,.;al and F J Candian " wilh
tUKTRO tlcttic.<bdc:cSc:m,.... s.A.
E·fn:ltl.s. t$\Xlbaf.olwcir:rgi ..~org. sx-d1lba'4i d~· fcis.mesp.br.
&odc:nr;u,candian@:-dctt:ro.L"'OIU..br
l-42-14--0288-3/06/S20.00 02006 IEEE
which presenl a strong innuence on lhe determination of loss
unitary costs. Tiic load fac1.ic is usually obtained "ith energy
and demand measurements, whereas, to compute the loss
fuctor it is necessary lhe learning of demand and energy loss,
which are nOI, in gcneml, prone of direct measurements.
Some disturbing clements can complicate the estimation of
those factors: seasonal lood and the load growing, for insu:moo.
Anolher fuctor rellec1od in the load and loss factors is the
consumer diversity u11d the different consumer behaviors in
areas o:f a same compimy. due lo different geograpbical und
socioeconomic churnc1eris1ics.
Since the '20s works lhat present reviews of both factors
have been published, relating them through a constant
coefficient k. whose vnlue is recommended 10 be between 0.04
and 0.30. In lhis work, ii is presented a recent study in a
Brnzilion cleclrie ullhly: ELEKTRO - Elelricidade c Servi~~
S.A., in order 10 deu:nnine 1he relationship be1ween lo;id and
loss factor. ELEKTRO :;upplies energy to 228 ci1ies of 1hc
state of Sao Paulo, and is divided in eight areas (Andradina.
Atibaia, Guaruja. lwnhaem, Limeira, Rio Claro, Tami and
Votuporanga), each one wi1h panicular cbarac1eris1ies.
TI1is work is organized in the follo"'ing way: in section 11
ihe definitions and forms to obtain ~1c load and loss factors urc
presented. In tbe next section it is developed the relationship
between both factors. The s1eps 10 achieve prae1ical results arc
presented in section IV. Finally, in the section V, the results
found tor the company ELEKTRO are presented and
discussed.
II. loAD FACTOR MD Loss FACTOR - DEFINITIONS
Jn this section lhc conceprs and expressions for the
derermina1ion of load ond loss fac1or will be presented
Load Factor (LFJ: Ratio be1ween the average power
( D,,,"""!l,) and the maximum demand ( D•.., ), in a period of
time[ I].
r 0(1 )di
T
(I)
where r 0( I )di is lite insmntaneous demand that represents
the energy supplied to ihc system (£} during the period or 1he
time T. Thus, it is ob1aincd:
E
lF=- - (2)
o_r

Equation (2) is the most common form for determining the
load factor, because energy (E) and maximum demand ( D „ )
are obtained through measurements at the substation and
supply points of great consumers.
When the demand and the energy are related, the load
factor is important for evaluating the economics of any supply.
Given that a system is planned as a function of the maximum
demand, a high load factor means a high use rate and,
consequently, reduced unitary cost ( f o r unit o f supplied
energy) [1].
Loss Factor (LLF): Ratio between the average power losses
( ) and the losses during peak load ( L„,„„ ), in a period
of the time. In other words, the loss factor is simply the load
factor of the losses.
L„ , I I T ) L(t
LLF= = (3)
L „ , L T
where I : LW & i s the instantaneous demand losses that
represent the energy losses of the system (e) during the period
of the time T Thus, it is obtained:
LLF — —
(4)
L T
Nonetheless, (4) is not viable for loss factor calculation,
because the power and energy losses are not obtained from
direct measurements. Their estimations are based on previous
knowledge of their own loss factors.
Acknowledging that loads present nearly constant power
factor, and expressing both the demand and energy in p.n. of
their respective maximum values, it is computed the following
relationship between losses and demand:
kil"A'CD(1)12 ( 5 ) LI,F=(1.F)+(LF)2(1—k)
Thus, the loss factor can be expressed in relation to the
demand, according to (6):
LLF=
[D(t )]2 dt
(6)
D„„, T L L F = 0 . 3 0 ( L F ) + 0 . 7 0 ( L F )2
When hourly measurements are available, the integral o f
expressions (1) and (3) can be substituted by summations, as
in (7) and (8):
ED(i) (7)
LF =1-1
(Denax)T
E[D( (8)
LLF-
(Anal)2 r
Therefore, the load and loss factors could be obtained in a
better manner by distribution utilities i f it is used the load
curves of all consumers, however this is not viable. The way
used b y companies is the estimation o f consumer typical
curves, which i s not yet a common practice for utilities.
Usually for tariff calculations, companies make measurement
!
2
campaigns and then obtain characteristic curves for consumers
separated by groups, e.g. tariff groups, according to Table I.
TABLE I
TARIFF GROUPS AND VOLTAGE LEVELS IN BRAZIL [2]
Tariff Grou Volta L e v e l s
A2 88 a 138 kV
A3 69 kV
A3a 30 a 44 kV
A4 2 2 kV
< 2 . 3 kV
The periodical update of this database would be of extreme
importance f o r t h e technical losses calculation a n d ,
consequently, for the non-technical losses too.
Disregarding variations produced by some parameters that
are difficult to quantify (voltage level, atmospheric conditions,
defective connections, etc.), t h e technical losses i n t h e
distribution systems can be divided in two large groups:
Independent losses o f the load (constant losses): arc the
losses in the core o f distribution transformers and voltage
regulators, in the capacitor banks, voltage reels of meters, etc.
Given that these losses are constant, i t i s verified that:
LLF = 1 .
Dependent losses o f the load (variable losses): are the
ohmic losses i n t h e primary a n d secondary network
conductors, and also in the series windings o f the existent
equipment, such as transformers, voltage regulators, meters,
etc. In this case: 0 < LLF I .
III. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LOAD FACTOR AND LOSS
FACTOR
Since the late '20s, researchers have been looking for a
form to relate the lass factor (LLF) with the load factor (L.F).
All the studies led to an empiric equation (9).
( 9 )
where,
: constant coefficient.
Some previous works, such as [1], have suggested the use
of the value 0.30 fur the constant coefficient k. Then:
( 1 0 )
A planning work group at the Brazilian Power Holding -
ELETROBRAS, called GTCP, recommended i n 1983 the
value 0.20 for the coefficient k. According with [3], it was
concluded, based on analysis o f the global load curves o f
several Brazilian companies, that the parameter k varies within
0.04 and 0.14. During late '80s, another work [4], using
American and Canadian companies' data, found the value 0.08
for (9):
LLF =0.08( LF )+ 0.92( LF f (
It is noted, consequently, a variation of the values obtained
1 1 )
for the constant coefficient k, nonetheless always under the
traditional value 0.30.
Given the strong influence of the loss factor on the loss cost
determination (when expressed in RS/kW), it is recommended
that the companies look f o r increasing their typical load
curves, considering the several segments of their networks, in
 3

order
De
ma
n
p
(d.- to quantity more accurately the parameter k.
)u In [3], to relate the load and loss factors it was considered
A load curve corresponds to a graphic representation of the the load-duration curve and the variable losses (quadratics), it
demand as a function of the time, along any period T (year, is divided in n elementary intervals o f duration di, i.e., a
month, week, day or a fraction of them). In some cases, loss degree function, according to Fig. 3.
calculation becomes more convenient than the use of load-
duration curve, w h i c h corresponds t o a decreasing
monotonous. This curve is obtained from the load diagram and
represents for how long a given value of demand is exceeded,
according to Fig. 1 and Fig. 2. A load-duration curve is a.

obtained by putting in decreasing order the registered demand

values in the load curve. In other words, the load-duration
curve is shaped for the points (a,1) such that 1 is the integral of
.4-11
all the infinitesimal periods during which the power is larger
or equal the a.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 0 11 12 13 14 1518 17 18 19 2021 22 2324
2.0
0..11 How

16
Fig, 3. Lead-durationcurvedivided in nintervals.
1.2D.
According to the definitions of load and loss factors and
0.4
considering Fig. 3,(12) and (13) are obtained as follows:
er
0.4 Ea, (12)
• 4 — i r
Ti T 2
0.0 n[ a a l a , a , J air'
12 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 2021 22 29 24
2 2
Hour
LLF = - 1 a + p a +
Fig. I. Characteristic load curve of the Tariff Group B Industrial.
' L ' a l
(13)
20
2
„ E
(_a2 =1a•
-
18
a , ) a2 n
12
Since
a, 5a,
lt is obtained:
0.4
(a, 2 a ,
00
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1011 12 13 14 15 16 17 16 15 20 21 22 23 24 a, a l
Hour Therefore,
Fig. 2. Lead-duration curve referring of thc curve at Fig. I. LLF 5 LF

A very common procedure is to normalize the load duration Combining (12) and (13) it is obtained:
curve, in other words, all the registered load points are divided
by the maximum load and the time values by the maximum (n a 7 2ta1a,
time. In this way, the curve obtained through this procedure is LLF = LF2 + 2 i2=1 i< ( 1 7 )
2 2
a normalized load-duration curve. n n
Once the load-duration curve is formulated, it is expressed Given that
in a condensed way through a degree function. This process of n n
approximation through the degree function is exactly the load- (n— O l a f 2 E a , a 1 i < j ( 1 8 )
duration curve segmentation, according to Fig. 3. The value of
a degree is given by the arithmetic average o f the load- It is obtained:
duration curve values within the interval defined for the level LLF L F 2 ( 1 9 )
changed. With (16) and (19) it is computed the interval of loss factor
When there is no information about the load curves, it is variation in relation to the load factor.
common to quantie the loss factor (LLF) of variable losses, LFLLFLF2 ( 2 0 )
relating it exclusively to the load factor (LF).

!
 The graphic represcn1a1ioo oflhis inequality is presented in
~4. u
12

•
.,,~c
D.9

•e ll6
8
0.3

t 2 3 <I 5 8 7 6 9 10 11 11 t)" 1S 18 If II 19 20 2 1222'3 24

02 O.<I
l.ot.d'Ktor
0-6
•• Hou<
Fig. 6. Lgad cun·c in p..u. o( com1nicn:J:1l 'on~1n1t.n.
Fij . 4, Rcl>1rlon;htp tk.'cwl!1:n load tlu:tor and loss IU..:tor

The same resulls could be also obtained ifjLtst rwo intervals

2.0
are considered. instead of' /1 intervals, according to [I ]-[4].
1.6
<.:oe.fficlent: 13<1uatio11 (2 1) was oblain<.-d lhrough
<.:ons/(111/ ...,.
(9) and rcprcse11~~ ~1c c<>nstanl coefl1cien1 k which musl be •
.!!, 1.2
.,,c
pcriodic111ly estimated from Lhc real lo11d curves. ~
0.8
e
k =1.1.F - J.F 1
(21) 8
0.4
LF-LF1

TV. ALOO!UTllM FOii OCllALNLNO TllliCOEFFlClENT K 1 2 3 4 S 6 1 a 91011 Ut3 I" 15t81'I' 11t li2021222324
Hour
In 2003, ii was accomplished 01 tbe requesl of the ANEEL
(Bruj lian Na1iona l Agency Elec1ric Energy), a measurement f ig. 7. l...oad 1..-urvc in p..u. of induwi141 consumers.
campaign for th e Brazilian elcclric utilities aimed al reviewing
the electric tnri O's, in which the companies obtained lypical Fig. 8, Fig. 9 and Fig. 10 represent lhc load curves of tl1e
load curves for the consumers according 10 each tariff group. others tariff groups.
Thus, 10 reln1e tl1e lood and loss factors for the ELEKTRO
company. lypic:il load curves in p.u.. \\ere used. Fig. S, Fig. 6
and Fig. 7 arc enmplcs of lypical curves in p.u. for coosumers 1.2
1hu1 po5SCSS voltage levels below 2.3 kV. ;
.!!,
...c o.a
~
e
20 8
0,4

~ 1..S
iA 10 1 2 s 4 s 6 7 t tt0 11t213 141&t617 1ll9202122232rt
Hou<
05 Fig.. S. Luad curve l.)f 88 · 1.18 kV con:i.'\lnM.T$ (Oro1.1p Al).

I 2 3 4 5 6 7 fl 9 101 11213 14 1516 1718 19202122 2324 I.ti

HO<I<

f ig, 5. L-Oad 1.'lll'\'1,1 in p,lt, ul'r1..,.illcn1i:il ~onsuml'CS. 1.2

•
.!!,
.,, DA

J OA

t 2 3" 5 6 1 B 910Ht21S14151111t819202!222324
HOU<

f ig.. 9. Lood cun·c or JO · ~ O kV consuntcrS {Group A.Ill}.

 s
to lhe l)'Pical load curves, i.e., a large variation in the curve
decreases the lood factor, as in the case of residential
consumers. Using (5), where the hourly losses are considered
similar m the squared rtemand, and through the load curves
and (8), it is compu1L~l 1hc loss factors sho"'n in Table Ill.
TAOLE ll l
Loss f ACTORS
T artff GrO!!J!.S 1..1..F
A2 0.8972
A3 0 .6150
A3a 0.7048
A4 0.6606
1 2 3 • 5 6 1 a 9 'CJ1' 1.Z 13 '4 1S lf t7 ll lt:Z021 Z2ll2A
8-
...... a..
0.2888
0 .4015
8- 0.6342

For each area of the company there is a monthly measured l11e same observations stated [Qr Table n, can be used to
kWh, of e;ich tariff group. Thus. 1t is 110ssible to obtain the express \\11U1 occurs in Table 111. Finally, knowing the load
hourly load curve in kW, for (22) lilctors and tl1e loss factors, it is possible to compute the
DkW ( I") -- kWh D ( ') I 11 24 coenlcicnt k, tlirough (21 ).
( MD) r u I . • · ··.. (22)
24 TABLE IV
CuNSTANTCO\iFFIClENT"
where:
Ta riff Groups k
D;w( j J hourly demand in kW; A2 0.1713
kWh measured monthly energy: A3 02921
A3a 0.0785
MD number of measured da)lb of the month; A4 0.1027
D,. {j) hourly demand of the twicnl curves in p.u. e,,. 0.1844
a.. 0.3982
Thus. it was obtained the curves for the total kW for all s_, 0 .1557
tariff groups and consumer classes, considering the eight areas
or ELEKTRO. Consequently, "~th the expressions presented Table IV shows 1l1a1 tlte factor k varies substantially when 11
in the previous secuons the res1:>eclivc load and loss factor and is considered different voluige levels and consumer cln.~ses. It
the coefficien t k were calculated. can be noted lhnt in un industrial group lhe fuctor k surpasses
tl1e specified rnngc wi1hi11 0.04 - 0.30. This is due mainly 10
V. R ESULTS tl1e large amount of industrial activities of the companies o l'
ELEKTRO company supplies energy for 228 c1t1es tl1at cii is grou1J.
belongs to eight different areas of the Sao Paulo state. The Coosequenlly, for 2005, Llie ELEKTRO company c;in
typical load curves in p.u. refers to the company 3S a wbolc. compute the lood loss factor (LLF) by using (9) and th06C
Then, the presented results are values tar the tariff groups. values presented in Tnble IV. As an example, equation (2J)
The large diversity of chornctcrisiic:. and parameters that refers to B,,,, consumers. representing a large demand
aflect the factors calculation can lc;id the studies to different LLF = 0.1844( lF J+0.8156( LF )1 (23)
directions. In this work. it was ch05Cll the consideration of where 0.8156 refer.; 10 the coefficient ( 1- k J.
different consumer groups. 1.aking into account the classes and
voluige levels. Table LI presents the lood factors c3JcuJa1ed
VI. CONCI USJONS
using (2), for different tariff groups.
l.n this 1wper, an ana lysis of the relationship between loud
TABU; ll
l.oAD f At''ftJttS
and .loss fhc1or considering the application for Hrn7i lian
Tariff GrolJPs 1..F distribution companies was presented. The main objective of
A2 0.9423 Lhc work was to obwin a factor thaL allows predic1ing the
A3 J)'.7483 energy losses straightforwardly.
A3a 0 .8330
A4 0.8027
The study conducted in this paper sho"~' LhaL 1he
8- 0.4927 coefticienl can vary signiticatitly de1>eoding oo the main focus
s.,., O.S504 in analysis. Here, i1 was considered the c-0nswn~r classes in
o.n94 relation to their voltage levels, and the values obtained for the
8-
coefficient k were, in m11ny cnses, similar to those presented
before by other authors. except for the coefficient of those
It is noted that the load lilctor follows a tend.ency nccording consumers bclO\• 2.3 kV.
The etBKTRO company is present in different regions of
 6

die Sao Paulo state, and then its areas or concession can be
considered as different distribution compatl ies. Some areas
present more rural consumers, mcanwhile others present more
industrial consumers. T herefore, it is suggested, in cases like
this, to consider each region individ1u11ly for the com11utation
of the energy losses.

VJJ. R£F~t(~NCIFS
It) T. Olincn, - Electric power d4'1ribunon sysccm c~mccring. .. in Plasncs,
2nd ed.. •·ol. 3. J. PCla"S. Ed. N•"' Vook. ~M)r>W· lhll. t986. pp. 52-61.
[21 Oiwibw!Oo Proc<dun:< (PRODISTJ. ANEEL. Availabl<
ui:hitp-J/www.an"'l.gp•·. br (in Ponu;;uac).
[JI OISUlbuoon Comir.c (CODI~ "M<'bod for <On.,Ulali<>n. .,,.Jysis and
optimization of technical lo:sst..'$ 1n dtslrlbuuon sysh.·ms. COOJ./9-34.
ABR.IDEE. ~<>. 1996. (in PomJ>'ll<'><).
(4 1 M. W. GusiatSon and J, S. O.\ylor. "The: <qUl\":llcn1 hours 1.,. riletor
n,:\Uitcd." l6EE Tront. 011 Puw~r S.r~t..wt.1, \'ul l. no. 4. pp. l 502-1508.
Nowmbcr t988.

v m. B100R1\PlllES

l\larcelo Et1cobar dt OH\ C"h't1 (S'06) w-1u.tu;11cd

1

from lhc Sliltc Unl\'crsity ol' Silo P'aulu (VN ESP) -

IUla Solteira, Sr. Bl'nZll, 1n 2004. OlllU'\tly he is
1ow·.trds 1.he Ph.0. :.I UNESr llh!i Soh~ira. SP.
Brazil. I lis rc9eO'lr~h 1n1crcs1s are d1siritmtioll svsrem
analysas and d1Sinbu1cd gcnm11on ·

A n to n io Pad llh ... r t'llffn {i't •at. $ \f'tf;) obtainc:d

lhc BS<. dq;r<e livm UTI. ahc l<LSc. and Ph.D.
from U'NICAMP, Bni21I. He 13 t"Urrmtly a Full
Prof~r at Elo..·trh;of .. n¥1nctTmg Uc:p:irtmcnt or
UNESP llh.1 Sultdm. Sr. Orn:til. from l995 to
1997 he w:as a Visatlna l-'ili..:uhy at ECE Department
of Univcr:iity of \Vis1.:onsin - MadiM>n. Ilis main
inh:rcsu arc 1n an11lyi.is 1,nd i.:ontrol uf p0wer
sys1..·ms.

f rt'dt.-lto Jatob C1tndlRn 1:1J11du1H\.'d fro1n EFEI.

Bra2il. l·lc is CUtTC'n11y nn l:J cl.'tr11.:11I Eng.meet of
El EKTRO ~ l ccndd:idc c Sm·i~os S A-. SP.
Brazil