SCC member receives IEC’s Lord Kelvin Award

The Lord Kelvin Award is the highest honour at the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). It recognizes an individual’s exceptional and long-term contributions to global electrotechnical standardization. The Standards Council of Canada (SCC) is proud to announce that Elias Ghannoum received the 2024 Lord Kelvin Award. He is the 39th person to achieve this honour and the second from Canada.

Image Jo Cops (left), IEC president, and Elias Ghannoum, Lord Kelvin Award recipient.

Image Left to right: Scott Steedman, BSI director-general, standards; Chantal Guay, SCC chief executive officer; Elias Ghannoum, Lord Kelvin Award recipient; Colin Clark, president of the Canadian National Committee of the IEC; and Jo Cops, IEC president.   Photo credits: IEC

Elias Ghannoum is a Montreal-based engineer with more than 53 years of experience in overhead transmission lines. His expertise includes designing and optimizing high-voltage transmission lines and towers, and construction and failure analyses. He was with Hydro-Québec for 27 years, where he headed the overhead lines design and standards division for 2 decades. Globally, he has provided engineering services for more than 60 transmission system operators and utilities including those in Greece, India, South Africa, the U.S. and Brazil. 

“This recognition highlights the importance of updating standards for overhead lines and conductors,” Elias said. “Receiving this award also acknowledges my long-term commitment and contributions to improving the reliability and safety of power systems by standardizing transmission line design and mitigating the consequences of their cascading failures.” 

His involvement in standards development spans more than 45 years. He is currently the convenor of a maintenance team for IEC/TC 11 Overhead lines, and chaired IEC/TC 7 Overhead electrical conductors for 30 years. Over the decades, he collaborated across IEC, electric systems council CIGRE and the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers) to lead working groups for critical standards on the loading and strength of overhead lines, IEC 60826, and characteristics of round wire concentric lay overhead conductors, IEC 61089. 

“Elias’ achievement is a proud moment for Canada,” said Chantal Guay, CEO of SCC. “His life’s work and passion for standards development embodies the pinnacle of Canada’s contributions to building a better future through standardization.” 

Elias received the award at the IEC general meeting in Edinburgh, which also celebrated the 200th anniversary of Lord Kelvin’s birth. While best known for inventing the international system of absolute temperature (the Kelvin scale), Lord Kelvin was the first president of IEC and an early champion of using wind as a source of renewable energy. 

“The IEC Lord Kelvin Award is our highest honour,” said Jo Cops, President of IEC. “It recognizes exceptional and long-term contributions to global electrotechnical standardization. I’m proud to announce that the 2024 Lord Kelvin Award goes to Elias Ghannoum. 

“Overhead transmission lines bring electricity to hundreds of millions of people around the world. They play a crucial role in delivering uninterrupted power to homes, businesses and industries, supporting modern life and economic growth. Mr Ghannoum’s work has helped to make them safer, more resilient and more sustainable.” 

With today’s world racing to build a sustainable future through the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), Elias’ work with committees on overhead electrical conductors, IEC/TC 7, and overhead lines, IEC/TC 11/MT 1, is helping to advance SDG 11 through more reliable power lines that make cities safe, resilient and sustainable. 

“Our focus on incorporating reusable materials like aluminum and adapting standards to account for climate variability helps ensure that power lines are designed to withstand extreme weather without excessive costs,” he said. “This balanced approach helps prevent widespread failures and supports sustainable urban development.”