SWITZERLAND AND QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA — According to both companies, the upgrade project should boost the interstate power transfer capacity between Queensland and New South Wales.
 

Hitachi Energy and TransGrid have recently announced that they are successfully collaborating on a large project to upgrade a crucial part of Australia’s transmission lines. TransGrid, a leading Australian transmission network service provider, has announced that the Queensland – New South Wales Interconnector (QNI), a 330-kilovolt (kV) transmission link, over 300 km (187 miles) in length, has recently received crucial reliability upgrades.

According to both companies, the upgrade project should boost the interstate power transfer capacity between Queensland and New South Wales. This should allow the two states not only to share low-cost power generation between each other and reduce electricity bills for customers but also to increase the capacity of the network to integrate renewable energy.

According to TransGrid, QNI shared the same power quality issues as all long transmission links. In order to help maintain a stable voltage profile across the transmission line, Hitachi Energy has installed a total of nine open rack capacitor banks across the transmission line to help maintain a uniform voltage profile across the network, at the key Tamworth, Armidale, and Dumaresq substations, thus offering enhanced power quality and network reliability.

"The QNI upgrade will enable the sharing of safe, reliable, and lower-cost electricity between the two states. The project also ensures improved power flow, supporting a cost-effective and stable supply of electricity to energy customers, especially during peak demand periods,” said TransGrid’s Project Director Colin Mayer.  “Hitachi Energy’s capacitor banks, installed at strategic locations in the network, will boost the reliability of the interconnector, strengthening voltage stability across the transmission line,” he added.

Source: Hitachi Energy