SGI/HYDRO-QUEBEC TRANSENERGIE PROVIDE POWER GRID SIMULAION.

To address worsening strains on U.S. electric power companies that resulted in the August 14 East Coast Blackout, Silicon Graphics (NYSE:SGI) and Hydro-Quebec TransEnergie (Hydro-Quebec's Transmission Division) have teamed to provide a powerful and comprehensive power grid simulation capability that enables power companies to simulate potential problems and test critical equipment improving system reliability.

The joint effort combines SGI(R) Origin(R) 3000, the world's most scalable, microprocessor-based supercomputer, and Hydro-Quebec's HYPERSIM, a world-class, fully digital, real-time power grid simulator application. The offering enables power transmission companies to leverage the field-tested HYPERSIM solution that has successfully supported Hydro-Quebec's grid simulation needs for three years.

"The East Coast Blackout was the worst in U.S. history, but with demand for electricity growing and power companies hesitant to purchase expensive new equipment, similar outages will happen again unless power transmission companies are provided better solutions for testing, strengthening and balancing their power grids," said Larry McArthur, senior director, Market Strategy, Manufacturing, SGI. "Our Origin 3000 supercomputing platform has the compute power to run HYPERSIM's extremely complex and data intensive grid simulations in real-time. Transmission planners and operators are provided highly realistic graphical representations of power load problems, enabling them to develop control and operations strategies for facing critical situations."

Marketing the new solution for Hydro-Quebec will be TransEnergie Technologies, a subsidiary of Hydro-Quebec TransEnergie that markets power systems simulation products developed by IREQ, Hydro-Quebec's Research Institute.

HYPERSIM is the next stage in real-time digital simulation, offering users a precise replica of their energy transmission and distribution systems for testing and training. It incorporates more than 25 years of Hydro-Quebec expertise in analog power system simulation, with the added advantage of a powerful graphical user interface. HYPERSIM shortens testing time cycles from weeks to days, and is able to simulate thousands of faults per day, analyzing them as tables or waveforms.

"For the actual equipment being tested there is virtually no difference between the simulator and the real power system," said Alain Vallee, CEO, TransEnergie Technologies. "SGI's Origin 3000 platform provides the power that enables HYPERSIM to run simulations at speeds equivalent to the phenomena occurring in the real power system."

The SGI and TransEnergie Technologies offering has the potential to deliver significant cost savings for transmission companies. Studies indicate that only three hours of outage per year can cost a utility upwards of $2 million, based on an average energy rate of 10 cents per kWh and a power system of 7,000 MW.

"We are proud to team up with Hydro-Quebec, which is widely recognized as one of the most technologically advanced and innovative power utilities in the world," said McArthur. "Hydro-Quebec was the first power company in the world to adopt 735 kV transmission lines and historically, it has successfully delivered power to millions of customers in the most demanding of winter climates. This is a very potent offering that addresses a mission critical need for transmission companies in the U.S. and other countries."

SGI Origin 3000 supercomputer provides the uninterrupted service and extremely high performance required by such a complex and demanding environment as the HYPERSIM simulation software. The Origin system with SGI(R) NUMAflex(TM) shared memory architecture, expandable to more than 1,000 processors in a single-system image, is critical since it allows customers to scale the solution to suit the size of their power grid.

In addition to power transmission companies, the combined SGI and TransEnergie Technologies offering is designed for equipment manufacturers, which can use the solution to test control and protection systems before installation in the customer's grid, thus boosting quality control and ensuring successful product installations. The solution is also suitable for electrical engineering education departments at colleges and universities, enabling students to learn in highly realistic simulated environments and develop prototypes of power electronics applications aimed at improving reliability and power quality.

"Using Origin and HYPERSIM, customers can easily create a new topology of a power system and be ready to perform a simulation from scratch inside one day," said Vallee.

Silicon Graphics

SGI, also known as Silicon Graphics, Inc., is the world's leader in high-performance computing, visualization and storage. SGI's vision is to provide technology that enables the most significant scientific and creative breakthroughs of the 21st century. Whether it's sharing images to aid in brain surgery, finding oil more efficiently, studying global climate or enabling the transition from analog to digital broadcasting, SGI is dedicated to addressing the next class of challenges for scientific, engineering and creative users. With offices worldwide, the company is headquartered in Mountain View, Calif.

For more information, call 650/933-5683 or visit http://www.sgi.com.