ABB has won a $30 million order from ScottishPower Renewables to supply two SVC Light Static Compensators (STATCOMs) that will smooth out the voltage fluctuations that are an inherent feature of intermittent wind energy.

They will increase power transfer capability, improve power quality and enhance grid stability, enabling more energy efficient and reliable power supplies for millions of consumers. The order was booked in the second quarter of 2017.

The UK government has set a target to meet 15 percent of its energy needs from renewable sources by 2020. Contributing to this goal, the East Anglia ONE project is expected to provide in total, 714 megawatts (MW) of renewable wind energy from 102 wind turbines to meet the needs of over 500,000 homes. The offshore wind farm is located approximately 43 kilometres (km) off the Suffolk Coast in the southern North Sea.

STATCOM is part of ABB's family of FACTS (Flexible Alternating Current Transmission Systems) technologies that help reduce losses, enhance the capacity and flexibility of power transmission systems and contribute to more efficient and reliable grids.

As the technology pioneer and market leader, ABB has delivered more than 800 FACTS installations around the world. Acting as the brain of the STATCOM, is the ABB AbilityTM MACH system which monitors, controls and protects the sophisticated technology in the station, managing thousands of operations to ensure power reliability and efficiency.

Two advanced ABB TrafoStar Autotransformers will be incorporated in the STATCOM system. These compact and low weight transformers are ideal for this type of application as they combine the functionality of two transformers in one, while boosting energy efficiency by significantly reducing the total losses.

"ABB's advanced STATCOM and transformer technologies will not only help stabilize voltage fluctuations and enhance power capacity but also improve the quality and reliability of renewable wind energy supplies to millions of people," said Patrick Fragman, head of ABB's Grid Integration business, a part of the company's Power Grids division.

"Renewables and power quality are both key focus areas of our next level strategy and such technology solutions reinforce our position as a partner of choice for enabling a stronger, smarter and greener grid."

Tweet

Unbalanced wind farm planning exacerbates fluctuations
Zurich, Switzerland (SPX) Jul 18, 2017
The expansion of renewable energy has been widely criticised for increasing weather-dependent fluctuations in European electricity generation. A new study shows that this is due less to the variability of weather than from a failure to consider the large-scale weather conditions across the whole continent: many European countries are unilaterally following national strategies to expand wind ener ... read more

Related Links
ABB
Wind Energy News at Wind Daily

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only