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Press Release20 April 2023Siemens EnergyBerlin
Siemens Energy to supply technology for three offshore grid connections in the North Sea in billion-euro contract
"In the global race against climate change, grid
expansion must be able to keep pace with the accelerated expansion targets for
renewable energies. Shorter contracting processes, large-scale tenders and
standardization of solutions show how grid operators and manufacturers are
already pulling together to get green energy to consumers faster," said
Tim Holt, member of the Siemens Energy Executive Board. "However, in order
for the industry to continue ramping up capacity, all available levers must now
be pulled at the policy level as well - from raw material and skilled labor strategies
to further streamlining permitting processes at all levels."
The three grid connections, named BalWin3,
LanWin2, and LanWin4, will transport electricity from wind farms in the
German North Sea to grid connection points in the north of Germany. Each of the
systems has a transmission capacity of two gigawatts. Siemens Energy will
manufacture the main electrical components, such as switchgears, transformers
and converter technologies, at its factories in Europe. The Spanish consortium
partner Dragados Offshore is responsible for the construction and offshore
installation of the platforms.
Siemens Energy had already won major orders for the
connection of wind farms in the German North Sea as recently as the end of
2022. With the three new projects, the company is currently handling 11 HVDC
grid connection projects worldwide to connect wind farms in Germany, the UK and
the US, and can look back on five completed projects in the German North Sea.
Once the 11 ongoing projects are commissioned,
Siemens Energy's HVDC technology will feed more than 19 GW
of wind power into high-voltage grids worldwide.
This is how wind power comes ashore with HVDC
technology:
Wind turbines generate electrical energy as alternating current. To transport the electricity from offshore wind farms onshore, it has to be converted into direct current. Siemens Energy's high-voltage direct-current transmission technology, which has been installed in offshore converter platforms, takes care of this. The platforms, steel structures as tall as houses that stand on stilts in the sea near the wind farms, collect the electricity from the wind turbines. Inside them, the alternating current is converted into direct current. Only in this way can more electricity be transported to land with reduced losses through cable systems, some of which are several hundred kilometers long. There, the onshore converter station receives the direct current and converts it back into alternating current so that it can be fed into the German high-voltage grid and ultimately brought to consumers.
Wind turbines generate electrical energy as alternating current. To transport the electricity from offshore wind farms onshore, it has to be converted into direct current. Siemens Energy's high-voltage direct-current transmission technology, which has been installed in offshore converter platforms, takes care of this. The platforms, steel structures as tall as houses that stand on stilts in the sea near the wind farms, collect the electricity from the wind turbines. Inside them, the alternating current is converted into direct current. Only in this way can more electricity be transported to land with reduced losses through cable systems, some of which are several hundred kilometers long. There, the onshore converter station receives the direct current and converts it back into alternating current so that it can be fed into the German high-voltage grid and ultimately brought to consumers.
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Siemens Energy is one of the world’s leading energy technology companies. The company works with its customers and partners on energy systems for the future, thus supporting the transition to a more sustainable world. With its portfolio of products, solutions and services, Siemens Energy covers almost the entire energy value chain – from power generation and transmission to storage. The portfolio includes conventional and renewable energy technology, such as gas and steam turbines, hybrid power plants operated with hydrogen, and power generators and transformers. A majority stake in the wind power subsidiary Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) makes Siemens Energy a global market leader for renewable energies. An estimated one-sixth of the electricity generated worldwide is based on technologies from Siemens Energy. Siemens Energy employs around 92,000 people worldwide in more than 90 countries and generated revenue of €29 billion in fiscal year 2022.