GE announced its Grid Solutions business has completed the three-month trial of its Static Var Compensator (SVC) upgrade to the existing SVCs at two substations at Statnett, an electrical transmission system operator (TSO) in Norway.
Grid Solutions, a GE Renewable Energy business, said Flexible AC Transmission System (FACTS) upgrade improves the operational efficiency and stability of Statnett’s alternating current (AC) power system in order to accommodate more renewable energy. The upgrade marks the largest SVC revamp project Statnett has ever undertaken — and is also one of the largest in the industry.
The Rod and Verdal substations did not face interruptions during the three-month performance trial period, which ended in October 2021.
Ongoing operation of the two SVCs continues, including the use of advanced features such as Power Oscillation Damping, due to the implementation of GE’s “SmoothSine” control software, which provides better consistency and efficiency of the software development, testing and implementation.
“With the completion of this project for Statnett, GE has once again proven the technical and project execution capabilities of our FACTS solutions using our innovative “SmoothSine” software approach,” said Fabrice Jullien, FACTS Global Business Leader at GE’s Grid Solutions. “SmoothSine will create the simplicity needed to enable our customers to embrace the energy transition with confidence.”
GE said it leads the industry in developing high-voltage reactive compensation solutions, including Static Synchronous Compensators (STATCOMs), Static Var Compensators (SVCs), Series Compensation Systems and Synchronous Condensers.
Rod and Verdal SVCs use a 12-pulse rectifier configuration enabling configuration without passive filters, which means they take up less space. GE introduced a three-phase stacked thyristor valve configuration which contributed to a 66 percent footprint reduction.
GE’s FACTS technology allows utilities to provide reactive power support, enhancing controllability, improving stability, and increasing power transfer capacity of AC transmission systems. The system design involves upgrades to Statnett’s existing SVCs to regulate the voltage in the system during normal operations and provide reactive power compensation during faults in the system.