According to Invenergy, adding the Grain Belt Express to the more than 400 miles of transmission infrastructure that the company has already successfully developed in the U.S. will provide American homes and businesses with access to some of the lowest-cost renewable energy in the country.

In a 5-0 vote, the Commission determined that allowing Invenergy to acquire Grain Belt is not detrimental to the public interest. It had initially approved the project in March.

“Invenergy acquiring Grain Belt benefits the Grain Belt Express Project, which benefits the State of Missouri and the public interest,” said the Commission. “The acquisition will expedite and promote the continued development of the Grain Belt Express Project, which will deliver low-cost wind energy to Missouri wholesale customers, who will, in turn, provide that lower-cost energy to their retail customers.”

The Commission noted in its decision that the Grain Belt Express Project will benefit the State of Missouri.

Expected benefits to the state include:

• An estimated 1,500 jobs during the three to four years of construction;
• A continuing source of property tax revenues to the political subdivisions where the facilities are located;
• A participant-funded model, such that Grain Belt Express assumes all financial risk of building and operating the transmission line, with no costs anticipated to be recovered through the rates of regional transmission organizations;
• An estimated $9.5 to $11 million in annual savings for customers of the Missouri Joint Municipal Electric Utility Commission, which will receive up to 250 MW of capacity from the project through an existing Transmission Services Agreement;
• Additional access to high-capacity-factor Kansas wind resources to fulfill the growing demand for renewable energy in Missouri.

The Commission approved the acquisition subject to the same protections for landowners through the landowner protocol, and other conditions imposed on Grain Belt in a March 20, 2019 Commission decision which granted Grain Belt a certificate of convenience and necessity to construct, own, operate, control, manage, and maintain a high-voltage, direct-current transmission line and associated facilities within eight Missouri counties (Buchanan, Clinton, Caldwell, Carroll, Chariton, Randolph, Monroe, and Ralls).

“Grain Belt did not object to those protections and conditions in that case, and Invenergy does not object to them in this case,” said the Commission. The Commission said it was appropriate to transfer those protections and conditions to Invenergy.

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ABB has won an order of more than $20 million from MHI Vestas Offshore Wind to supply reliable, energy-efficient and compact WindSTAR transformers, which are designed for installation in wind turbines.

ABB’s new transformer enables offshore wind turbines to operate at the world’s highest voltage of 66 kV, which significantly reduces losses and increases efficiency.

Borssele III and IV comprise the second phase of the Borssele wind farm. This phase constitutes a 731 megawatt (MW) wind project in the North Sea, 22 kilometers off the coast of The Netherlands and will be capable of providing enough clean energy to power more than 800,000 households.

ABB will supply its innovative WindSTAR power transformer, which is specifically designed to fit into the tower of a wind turbine. This transformer enables a new generation of powerful offshore wind turbines to operate at the world’s highest voltage of 66 kilovolts (kV), which significantly reduces losses and increases efficiency. It also brings lifecycle benefits and cost optimization.

“These innovative transformers facilitate the integration of offshore wind energy bringing clean power to consumers and reinforcing our position as a partner of choice for enabling a stronger, smarter and greener grid,” said Markus Heimbach, Managing Director of ABB’s Transformer business unit, a part of the company’s Power Grids division. “ABB is a leader in the wind industry, providing components to turbine manufacturers and enabling the connection of wind farms to the grid.”

As turbine size increases for offshore (reaching 9.5 MW in this project, a world record power level for commercial offshore wind), transformers must remain compact and lightweight with a minimal footprint, while also meeting specific application needs, mechanical structural constraints and costs.

ABB pioneered transformer technology in the 1890s and has since been at the forefront of record-breaking innovations including the world’s highest voltage HVDC converter transformer and AC transformer at 1.1 and 1.2 million volts respectively. As the world’s largest transformer manufacturer and service provider ABB has an unparalleled global installed base and a vast portfolio of power, distribution and special application transformers.

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ABB’s transformers will be installed in each of the three turbines on WindFloat Atlantic, a floating, offshore wind farm, comprising of the world’s largest and most powerful wind turbines ever installed on a floating foundation.

The transformers will be installed in each of the three turbines on WindFloat Atlantic, a floating, offshore wind farm, comprising of the world’s largest and most powerful wind turbines ever installed on a floating foundation.

“These transformers are another pioneering ABB technology innovation which will facilitate the integration of more renewables into the grid,” said Markus Heimbach, Managing Director of ABB’s Transformers business unit, a part of the company’s Power Grids division. “ABB technologies continue to shape the evolving grid with solutions that help run the world without consuming the earth.”

The 8.4-MW wind turbines are 190 meters tall to blade tip, more than double the height of the Statue of Liberty. Just three of these turbines will provide enough electricity for over 18,000 households in Portugal. The WindFloat Atlantic wind farm will come into operation in 2019.

Floating wind farms comprise wind turbines mounted on floating structures that allow the turbines to generate electricity in water depths where fixed-foundation turbines are not feasible. Floating wind farms have the potential to significantly increase the sea area available for offshore wind farms, especially in countries with limited shallow waters.

The WindFloat Atlantic wind farm will be positioned 20 kilometers off the coast of Viana de Castelo, Portugal, in a location where the sea is 100 meters deep. Traditional offshore wind turbines are secured onto the seabed and can only be used in depths of approximately 40 – 50 meters. This floating solution opens up large regions of previously unusable ocean to renewable offshore wind power generation.

ABB will supply its WindSTAR power transformers that are specifically engineered to be extra resilient against strong vibrations and extreme and sudden movements encountered on floating wind farms. The compact transformers are all designed to fit into the tower of offshore turbines. These 66-kV transformers for floating applications, present an important opportunity to facilitate offshore wind farms installed in deeper water. Traditional wind turbines are not viable in deeper waters and require expensive and difficult-to-install subsea infrastructure.

The 66-kV voltage level is the highest wind turbine rating in the industry, allowing for significant reduction in transfer losses and enabling higher efficiency.

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