By Anthony Allard, Head of North America, Hitachi Energy

The debate around the progress of the clean energy transition has often centered on generation, specifically, whether we can produce enough wind and solar power to displace fossil fuels. This is a valid concern, but equally critical is the need to make sure that we have the ‘plumbing’ in place to get this clean power from where it is generated to where it is needed. Here in the U.S., this challenge is particularly acute. When I say plumbing, I’m referring to transmission and distribution networks.

In the case of wind power, the energy generated by the turbines offshore needs to be transported back to shore – often over very long distances – and integrated with existing grids. However, given the scale of development taking place in the U.S., particularly on the east coast, it is unlikely that local markets will be able to absorb all the power being generated in local waters. For instance, current plans call for approximately 6 GW of capacity to be developed off Long Island, which would turn this region into a net exporter of power for the first time.

Similar dynamics exist in other parts of the country, such as the Midwest and desert Southwest. Both areas are attractive for renewable energy developers, but the best sites for development are often located far from established transmission corridors or major load centers. Transporting the power from these locations to other markets will require a more robust transmission grid serving a broader, diverse mix of geographies.

This mismatch between the areas served by existing transmission resources and the locations most attractive for renewable generation is one of the biggest bottlenecks slowing the progress of the clean energy transition. Addressing this bottleneck is a critical requirement for the United States and for North America more broadly if we are to achieve our collective carbon reduction targets and slow climate change.

Policy Challenges

Unfortunately, a variety of structural impediments make this goal difficult to accomplish. First, transmission systems frequently need to cover long distances and often cross state (and occasionally national) borders. This can make for arduous siting and permitting and processes, which can be extremely complex and contentious. As a result, political dynamics, public sentiment, and regulatory requirements can be the deciding factors in the success or failure of a given project.

Due in part to this fragmented process, the U.S. lacks a nationwide grid or sufficient transfer capacity between the existing regional interconnections to move large amounts of power between regions. There is currently no overarching national plan for electricity transmission in the U.S. Establishing such a plan would be an important step toward reducing the transmission bottleneck. It would aid in assessing a variety of requirements, including:

• The best potential locations for renewable energy development
• Locations of existing transmission lines and gaps
• Areas requiring more capacity
• Opportunities to strengthen transfer capacity between different regional grids and the interconnection areas

If such a plan is developed and implemented, it could facilitate the more effective sharing of power between different regions. This would offer a variety of benefits, such as helping to address localized supply shortages resulting from extreme weather events. It would also provide the capability to address the time-of-day challenges associated with renewable energy sources, which are not dispatchable.

For instance, during daylight hours, when solar generation in California is at its peak, excess power could be shipped back east to serve load centers in the center of the country. Similarly, in the evening, when wind power is abundant in the Midwest, available power could be shipped to the West Coast to fill the gap created as solar resources go offline. This kind of sharing is not possible today at anything like the scale needed to support the clean energy transition.

A siting and permitting process where national interest would prevail over local interests would be an ideal way to achieve high-level objectives, but political realities make this approach challenging. An alternative that could be explored is a collaboration between neighboring states to establish regional plans. This could help smooth the way for projects that have the potential to support the development of systems to support the regional sharing of power.

Technology solutions

The primary obstacles to the achievement of this goal are not technical. The key technologies needed to expand the transmission grid and resolve some of our most critical interconnection challenges are mature and available today. Advanced transmission technologies, such as high-voltage direct current (HVDC) and power quality solutions, such as flexible alternating current transmission systems (FACTS) have already proven themselves effective at meeting the transmission needs of utility-scale renewable energy projects and high-capacity regional interconnections. Such systems are already in commercial operation, addressing exactly these kinds of challenges around the world, most notably in Europe.

There is no reason we shouldn’t be putting the same kinds of systems in place in North America. Fortunately, there is growing interest and activity in the U.S. and Canada around the establishment of large-scale, long-distance electrical transmission systems, particularly to link renewable energy generation sources with load centers. And we have begun to see some positive movement in terms of concrete commitments.

Hitachi Energy announced the successful commissioning of a 500 kV – 1400 MVAr series capacitor bank, one of the largest in the world, on March 31, 2021 for Minnesota Power’s Great Northern Transmission Line project.

FACTS solutions offer a means to upgrade existing AC transmission grids to take advantage of systems that have already been permitted. A recent project Hitachi Energy completed with Minnesota Power addressed exactly this kind of opportunity.

Similarly, Hitachi Energy recently announced its involvement in a major renewable electricity transmission project called Champlain Hudson Power Express (CHPE), an HVDC interconnection between Quebec, Canada and the New York City metro area. CHPE will transfer up to 1,250 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 1 million New York households, which also helps to address the State of New York’s carbon reduction goals.

If we want to see a real impact in transitioning from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources, we need to see many more projects like CHPE and Minnesota Power. The demand for electricity is increasing, and this trend will accelerate as we electrify more sectors of the economy, like transportation, manufacturing, mining and more.

By reaching a collective agreement on the scope and broad outlines of the transmission needs in North America and removing or mitigating the structural impediments that are delaying or preventing the development of needed transmission projects, we could lay the foundation for the successful pursuit of our collective efforts to minimize the impacts of climate change. The U.S. government, local governments and industry have an opportunity to work together to accelerate the expansion of much-needed transmission resources. The sooner we get started, the better.

Sponsored content by Hitachi Energy

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By Hitachi Energy

The European Union’s North Sea countries recently vowed to build more than half of the bloc’s needed offshore wind capacity by 2050 in order to reach EU climate neutrality. At the heart of the ambition to turn the North Sea into a green energy powerhouse lies the idea that countries will collectively harvest the water’s windy resources and jointly reap the benefits of this interconnected clean electricity revolution. But such a complex network is yet to be designed and built, raising questions about how a meshed offshore grid could actually be implemented from a technical and economical point of view.

In this Perspectives, Sandy Mactaggart, Director of Offshore Delivery at SSEN Transmission, the electricity transmission network owner in the north of Scotland, and Niklas Persson, Managing Director of Grid Integration at Hitachi Energy, discuss the development of a meshed offshore grid based on hands-on experience gained whilst jointly developing one of Europe’s flagship HVDC (high-voltage direct current) multi-terminal projects in Scotland. They argue that offshore grids will be absolutely vital to unlock and harvest the best renewable energy resources and that a holistic planning approach involving all stakeholders as early as possible is the most efficient way forward. They also agree that a HVDC network stretching across several countries is technically feasible and that the entire energy transmission supply chain needs to tackle the risks surrounding current commodity price fluctuations and the availability of material.

Q: What are the benefits of strong relationships between project developers and technology providers when delivering energy transition projects?

Sandy Mctaggart (S.M.), SSEN Transmission: The key benefit of establishing long-term relationships with our supply chain and really understanding the collective approach is delivering on our plans by jointly managing the activities and risks.

Niklas Persson (N.P.), Hitachi Energy: I fully agree with what Sandy said and collaboration applies especially to HVDC technology. Its engineering processes are very specific compared to normal offshore AC substations where you have more standard interfaces that are well developed through many years of standardization. When it comes to HVDC we have a collaborative engineering process throughout the project. In our work with Sandy and his team we understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses. By discussing and agreeing on who is best suited to take on certain areas we eliminate risks throughout the execution process.

Q: How can project developers and technology providers best collaborate to deliver on plans, given the existing supply chain bottlenecks?

S.M.: As transmission operators we’re always working within tight timescales. I see great opportunity in a program approach rather than looking at individual projects, and in the UK we’re seeing this now with the publication of National Grid’s Holistic Network Design. It will certainly make it a lot easier by allowing us to organize activities in a way that encourages the most efficient delivery, while helping us avoid bottlenecks. Previously, we were often looking at individual projects as they came along with their own unique characteristics and timelines.

Specifically on the delivery of our second HVDC project, we found ways to improve efficiency when considering the timescales that were actually needed, without exposing either party to additional risks. The program approach certainly allows our management teams to learn from better planning and scheduling and to deploy lessons learnt on future projects.

N.P.: At Hitachi Energy, we have in the past been asked to do EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) work. Before, when the market was requiring only a couple of HVDC projects globally, we had the ability to either join forces with a partner or to carry out the construction work ourselves. But now that the market is requiring many more projects, we are looking at where can we scale best. That’s in our own factories where we make components like transformers, valves, control and protection, cooling systems etc., and it’s also in our engineering teams because we are a very attractive employer in this area.

Considering the scaling-up we are facing, we have adapted our approach to projects now through programs and more standardized interfaces, but also through each partner focusing on taking on the risks they can take on best and growing capacity to execute. This is key for us going forward.

Q: Are meshed offshore grids possible, and if so, what would be the benefits?

S.M.: There will be a requirement for offshore grids, they’re absolutely necessary for the future of the green energy transition.

We obviously need to look at the challenges associated with meshed offshore grids on a regulatory, technology and delivery basis. As a transmission operator, we are certainly taking very important steps towards an offshore grid. At the moment, we’re delivering the Shetland HVDC link project together with Hitachi Energy, that’s a multi-terminal project which will connect Shetland to the wider Great Britain’s grid for the very first time. Within Europe it’s certainly an important flagship project.

Point-to-point connections are becoming a challenge, certainly in the UK, in terms of achieving permissions and consents to build. That’s why we’re looking at the possibility of building a DC switching station in the Peterhead area of Aberdeenshire. We’re very confident in the multi-terminal technology that we’re deploying on the Shetland project which is an important foundations step for offshore grids. We need to address some of the challenges going forward but there’s no doubt that offshore grids will be needed.

N.P.: Agreeing on the design is the first thing that needs to happen. What will offshore meshed networks look like and what is the regulatory framework? How do you decide who receives the energy generated and when? How do project developers generate revenues? We need to address these questions before we can deploy the technology and decide how to collaborate among OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) to make sure that the various technologies actually integrate well.

Sponsored content by Hitachi Energy

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By Frede Blaabjerg, Professor of Power Electronics and Drives, Aalborg University and Simon Round, Corporate Executive Engineer, Power Electronics and Digital, Hitachi Energy

Power Electronics (PE) is not a topic of everyday discussion. Nevertheless, it is a vital transformational technology that is quietly operating in the background – unseen and unheard – yet, embedded into products that people use every day to make life more enjoyable.

We use Power Electronics to charge our smartphones and electric vehicles, and we use it to increase cooking efficiency through induction cooktops/hobs. The world’s industries are also becoming increasingly dependent on PE to increase efficiency in solutions. For example, PE is used to power large-scale aluminum production and efficiently transmit power across countries and seas. Power Electronics is revolutionizing the world’s energy systems – and can be increasingly found everywhere!

Power Electronics is the application of semiconductor electronics to the control and conversion of electric power.

These semiconductors are the power transistors and diodes that switch the input voltage on and off into a network of passive components to transform it to different voltage levels. Advancements in power semiconductor technology have enabled the power processing to even higher efficiency levels.

To correctly operate, the power conversion systems need to be controlled through embedded digital computers that run sophisticated algorithms thousands of times per second. The controller supervises the operation and adapts the behavior based on various parameters and set goals. This ability to change is embedded into digital algorithms which comprise the system and application knowledge.

PE is where the digital bits (information) meet the flow of electrons to perform optimal work. The combination of PE and digital technologies is the key enabler of the electrical power grid that will serve as the backbone of the carbon-neutral energy system.

Power electronics is unlocking social benefits

The presence and growth of Power Electronics in society come from its extreme flexibility and capability to adapt for the purpose. Power Electronics is a ‘multitool’ ready at hand for solving the many new challenges arising from a dynamic and accelerated transformation towards a carbon-neutral energy system. And the big winners are global society as well as the planet!

In the last twenty years, Power Electronics and its ability to enable game-changing technologies, bringing efficiency, compactness (less use of our planet’s land and resources) and reliability (keeping production on, even in extreme conditions) has strongly contributed to the journey towards carbon-neutral targets. Its speed of reaction, flexibility of control, and the scalability across power and voltage levels are key attributes that will ensure resiliency of the future energy system. PE is enabling the electrification of remote urban areas, converting polluting industrial processes and transportation infrastructure toward greener alternatives and improving the wealth of the population through more affordable energy – in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 7.

Power electronics is more relevant today than ever before

In recent decades the power grid was supplied by traditional rotating generation sources that had a main role in maintaining grid stability. Large-scale renewable power generation was just emerging, and bulk generation was concentrated in a few locations, while high voltage AC lines transmitted the energy from the generation sources to the load centers.

In the energy sector, PE applications were highly specialized solutions at the high and medium voltage level. High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC), for one, connected separated AC grids where AC transmission could not be used due to excessive losses, cost or differences in frequency. HVDC makes possible the provision of reliable energy to remote places and islands such as Shetland Islands in Scotland and Rio Madeira in Brazil while enabling a holistic power system across geographies and frequencies such as the Japanese power system in Higashi-Shimizu. Flexible AC Transmission Systems (FACTS), meanwhile, strengthened the AC network and power quality in weak nodes, while static frequency converter solutions electrified rail networks, decoupling the voltage and frequency of the rail network from that of the grid. Hitachi ABB Power Grids pioneered most of these PE applications.

The energy system is today undergoing a tremendous transformation, which due to its speed and outcome could be called a ‘revolution’. Increasing sustainability and environmental attention, sup-porting regulatory frameworks and new technology developments in the power sector are making electricity the backbone of the future energy system.

In this new and evolving situation, the role of Power Electronics has drastically changed.

Power Electronics connects renewable DC sources (e.g. solar PV) to the AC grid and is used to increase the controllability and efficiency of AC generation such as wind turbines and hydro power plants. HVDC technology realizes very efficient, long distance and fully controllable power transmission, allowing connection of offshore wind generation and interconnection of countries, enabling more energy trading. FACTS have become instrumental in solving the new power quality issues helping the existing infrastructure to cope with the new dynamic power flow even when the grid strength is reduced. From generation to consumption, Power Electronics is enabling solutions such as battery energy storage systems, pumped hydro storage, hydrogen production and conversion back to electricity.

Transportation is undergoing a real revolution towards electrification.

Sponsored content by Hitachi Energy

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