Abstract —With the prevalence of computer and developmentof information technology, Geographic Information Systems(GIS) have long used for a variety of applications in electrical en-gineering. GIS are designed to support the analysis, management,manipulation and mapping of spatial data. This paper presentsseveral usages of GIS in power utilities such as automated routeselection for the construction of new power lines which usesa dynamic programming model for route optimization, loadforecasting and optimizing planning of substation’s location andcapacity with comprehensive algorithm which involves an accu-rate small-area electric load forecasting procedure and simulatesthe different cost functions of substations. Index Terms —Geographic information systems (GIS), optimallocation and capacity, power distribution planning, route selec-tion, spatial load forecasting. I. I NTRODUCTION T HE ability to consume and control energy is one ofthe initial contributions to the development in our lifeall over the years. The use of GIS in power system hasgreatly enhanced the efficiency in energy sector. Proximityto the furthest customer and high cost to invest capital, arethe reasons that make the distribution system as an importantpart of electrical utility, which endeavor to improve the re-liability of general power system [1]. Problems of planningin distribution system can be solved by using new methodsand specific techniques. Complexity of electrical distributionsystem and necessity of accurate up-to-date information of thenetwork assets is a reasonable intention for introducing newmethod of information technology. GIS software breakthroughtechnology which help utilities discover new things abouttheir investments and risks, reduce the cost of manual main-tenance of the maps, and allows the simultaneous assessmentof technical, financial, and environmental factors. GIS havebeen proven to be a workable system to connect databaseinformation such as billing, material account, distributionanalysis and outage reporting in power utility. GeographicInformation Systems (GISs) are now being used widely forthe mapping and modeling of utility network systems. Utilitiesuse network models to monitor and analyze their distributionsystems. Network analysis conclude network tracing whichselects a particular path through the network based on user’scriteria, network routing which determines the optimal paththat has the shortest and the fastest distance and minimum