Hitachi Energy to supply digital solutions for Rio Madeira HVDC link
Image courtesy Hitachi Energy
Under an extended service contract, Hitachi Energy will supply Brazilian utility Electrobras with a suite of digital solutions, including real-time monitoring and cybersecurity, for the 2,375km Rio Madeira HVDC system.
The HVDC link, says Hitachi energy in a release, is one of the longest in the world and for over a decade, the system has benefited from Hitachi Energy’s HVDC technology under an EnCompass long-term service agreement, to deliver 3.15GW of power to some 45 million people.
With the extended contract, the project features a MACH control and protection system, the ‘brain’ behind the link, providing advanced monitoring and control functions through the entire lifetime of the HVDC system.
The extended agreement also includes cybersecurity solutions that are essential to increase the resiliency of the system and help guard the critical infrastructure against threats.
Commenting in a release was Andreas Berthou, head of HVDC & HVDC Service within Hitachi Energy’s Business Unit Grid Integration: “We’re proud to extend our partnership with Eletrobras, further strengthening our relationship of trust, transparency, and shared goals.
“We are committed to ensuring continued support to the Rio Madeira HVDC system throughout its lifetime, delivering cutting-edge digital service with sustainability and customer value at its core.”
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Rio Madeira HVDC
The Rio Madeira HVDC system is a 6,300MW, ± 600 kV HVDC transmission system in Brazil built to export electricity from hydropower plants on the Madeira River in the Amazon Basin to major load centres in southeastern Brazil.
A consortium of two companies in the Abengoa Group, Inabensa S.A (Spain) and Abengoa Construção Brasil Ltda (Brazil) awarded Hitachi Energy contracts to supply the power equipment for three HVDC stations.
Brazil’s power system is approximately 95% hydroelectric, with main load centres located in coastal regions, especially in the southeastern state of São Paulo.
Hitachi Energy provided two 3,150MW HVDC converter stations and one 800MW HVDC back-to-back station. The two 3,150MW converter stations are placed at either end of the transmission line, delivering electricity from two hydropower plants near Porto Velho in northwest Brazil to the southeast near São Paulo.
The third unit is an 800MW back-to-back HVDC station that transmits power to the surrounding AC network in northwest Brazil. This installation includes capacitor commutated converter (CCC)-type back-to-back converters instead of conventional converters for local electrical loads, providing continuous and even control of voltage and power in the weaker power networks of northwest Brazil.
The Rio Madeira transmission link was the second 600 kVHVDC transmission system in Brazil. The Itaipu HVDC project built by Hitachi Energy in the mid-’80s is the first.
