Providing the system reliability has become one of the most
prioritized requirements for power utilities. Aging power infrastructure
and increasing energy consumption and peak demand
are some of the reasons that create unreliability issues for the
power grid [26]. Harnessing the modern and secure communication
protocols, the communication and information technologies,
faster and more robust control devices, embedded intelligent
devices (IEDs) for the entire grid from substation and
feeder to customer resources, will significantly strengthen the
system reliability and robustness [26]. The availability of the
communication structure is based on preferred communication
technology. Wireless technologies with constrained bandwidth
and security and reduced installation costs can be a good choice
for large-scale smart grid deployments [24]. On the other hand,
wired technologies with increased capacity, reliability and security
can be costly [24]. To provide system reliability, robustness
and availability at the same time with appropriate installation
costs, a hybrid communication technology mixed with wired
and wireless solutions can be used.