National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET) has awarded a five-year framework agreement to power flow control technology company, Smart Wires. This will help decarbonize the UK electricity grid by enabling greater volumes of renewable power to be efficiently transferred to customers.

NGET will use modular power flow control technology to increase power transfer capability by making better use of its existing network. As the generation and demand connected to the network changes, network power flows change and circuits can become unequally loaded. Some circuits reach their maximum capacity while others are well below their limits. Installing power flow controllers allows NGET to provide the Electricity System Operator with the tools to quickly reduce the congestion that limits renewable generation, with minimal impact on communities and the environment.

A total of five projects will be installed in 2020. These projects will contain a total of 375 MVAr of power flow control capability. The projects are anticipated to increase boundary capabilities by 1.5 gigawatts in total across three boundaries. This facilitates increased power transfers of 500 megawatts from Scotland to England, enough power to supply more than 250,000 homes. NGET see numerous other opportunities across their network to leverage this type of technology over the course of the framework agreement timeframe.

Smart Wires notes that its technology can unlock more system capacity at a lower cost than legacy solutions. Additionally, once installed, legacy solutions cannot be moved or modified quick enough to match the pace of change affecting today's network. They therefore sometimes can be overrated, compared to the initial requirement, or replaced if the network changes further.

Smart Wires points out that the technology's modular design makes it quick to deliver and easy to scale or move. The ability to finalize projects 12 months prior to delivery provides unprecedented flexibility and means investments can be scaled up or down in response to changing system needs. The company notes that its technology provides several additional advantages compared with legacy solutions, including reduced substation footprint and digital control.

Source: Smart Wires. Image Source: Smart Wires