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Press Release08 December 2015Munich
Siemens presents new technology for converter stations
The advantage of the converters developed by Siemens also lies in the
high availability it provides for power transmission. The full bridge
technology makes it possible to “carry on working” through line faults. The new
technology allows faults on an overhead DC line to be resolved within the
converter, which keeps the fault and its repercussions to a minimum. The basic
principle is that faults in the grid must be rectified as quickly as possible
to prevent them from spreading. Another advantage is what is known as “black
start capability”. This refers to the ability to supply a part of the grid
with electricity again following a power failure, for example, and thus avoid
longer outages. The insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) used by Siemens
can also act as a generator to help a grid segment that has lost power to
recover autonomously, so they are also black start-capable. In general, HVDC
offers many more fundamental advantages compared to AC transmission: the
transmission capacity can be better controlled and losses on overhead lines are
lower than with AC.
“The full bridge technology resolves faults extremely quickly and can
reliably prevent grid faults from spreading to a blackout,” states Jan Mrosik,
CEO of Siemens’ Energy Management Division. “With this innovative development,
Siemens is providing the technology needed to successfully expand the grid and
thus also ensure the success of the transition to a new energy mix.”
ULTRANET is a joint-venture project between
Amprion and TransnetBW, and forms the southern part of one of the three planned
HVDC corridors between northern and southern Germany. The connection covers a
distance of 340 kilometers, from Osterath in North Rhine-Westphalia to
Philippsburg in Baden-Württemberg.
HVDC technology is the first choice for the
transmission of large volumes of energy across long distances with minimal
losses. In Germany, electricity from remote offshore wind farms can be
efficiently fed into the electricity supply network on-shore via HVDC. HVDC
enables grids that use different frequencies to be reliably connected together
and stabilized. As a transnational grid connection, HVDC permits the targeted
exchange of power between separate countries or states.
Demand for HVDC is growing rapidly. The past
40 years have seen HVDC connections with a total capacity of more than 100 GW
(equivalent to 100 large-scale power stations) installed world-wide. In this
decade alone, Siemens estimates that a further 270 GW will be added to this
total. It also estimates that the HVDC market will virtually double within five
years from the current €3 billion p.a. Siemens has implemented more than 40
HVDC projects world-wide to date, one-fourth of these in China. The total
amount of electricity that flows via these HVDC connections is comparable to
the average electricity consumption of industrial countries such as Spain or
Italy.
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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. More than 50 percent of the portfolio has already been decarbonized. A majority stake in the listed company 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 more than 90,000 people worldwide in more than 90 countries and generated revenue of around €27.5 billion in fiscal year 2020.