Dhruti Shah is a Principal Power Systems Engineer and Protection Study Lead at Enspec, bringing over six years of experience in power system analysis, protection, and renewable integration. With a background across the UK and India, she combines deep technical expertise with a forward-thinking approach to grid modernisation and sustainable energy. Dhruti reflects on her visit to DPSP Global in London.
Attending the 20th IET International Conference on Developments in Power System Protection (DPSP Global 2026) in London was a valuable opportunity to step away from project work and take a broader look at how power system protection is evolving.
Working in protection coordination studies and unit protection settings, many of the challenges discussed at the conference felt very familiar. What made the event particularly useful was hearing how those same challenges are being approached across the industry by system operators, researchers and technology providers.
Practical conversations, not just theory
One of the most useful aspects of DPSP was the quality of the discussion. The event brought together a wide mix of stakeholders including utilities, vendors and organisations such as NESO, National Grid and SPEN. The focus throughout was on real systems and real problems rather than purely academic ideas.
As networks continue to change, protection is having to keep pace. Increasing levels of renewable generation and inverter based resources are introducing new behaviours into the system. Many of the sessions reflected this shift and focused on how existing approaches are being adapted in practice.
Protection in an inverter dominated network
A consistent theme across the conference was the impact of inverter based resources on protection schemes.
There was a clear recognition that traditional protection methods are being stretched. Lower fault levels, different fault characteristics and faster system dynamics are all changing how protection needs to operate.
The direction of travel is towards more adaptive approaches. Wide area monitoring, better use of system data and more flexible protection strategies are becoming increasingly important. This is less about replacing existing principles and more about building on them to suit a different type of network.
Digitalisation becoming standard practice
Digital substations and IEC 61850 were also prominent topics throughout the event.
What stood out was that these are no longer emerging concepts. Many organisations are already implementing them as standard. The focus is now on making them work effectively, particularly in terms of integration, data use and system reliability.
This is also enabling more advanced protection analytics, with data playing a larger role in both design and ongoing system performance.
Learning from real projects
The case studies presented by transmission and distribution network operators were particularly valuable.
Hearing directly from those delivering projects provided useful context around what works, what does not and where the challenges sit. These sessions offered a level of detail that is difficult to get from theory alone and helped link wider industry trends back to practical application.
An industry thinking about its future
Alongside the technical content, there were also some important discussions around skills and knowledge.
The industry is facing a period where a significant amount of experience will be lost through retirement. At the same time, the complexity of power systems is increasing. Several sessions explored how knowledge can be transferred and how the next generation of engineers can be supported.
It was encouraging to see this being addressed openly, as it will play a key role in how the industry adapts over the coming years.
Final reflections
DPSP Global 2026 reinforced that power system protection is not standing still.
The grid is changing, and protection needs to change with it. More data-driven approaches, greater flexibility and a better understanding of how new technologies behave are all becoming part of day-to-day engineering practice.
Events like this are useful not just for keeping up to date, but for sense-checking how challenges are being approached across the industry. In many ways, it confirms that while the problems are evolving, the focus remains the same. Practical, well-engineered solutions that work in the real world.
Read more about protection coordination via one of our case studies here.
