Australia | February 18, 2022

Largest QLD-NSW Interconnector substation upgrade complete

Australia: The upgrade of the Tamworth substation is now complete, the larges substation as part of the Transgrid Queensland-NSW Interconnector (QNI) project.

 

Image source: Energy Magazine

Australia: The upgrade of the Tamworth substation is now complete, the larges substation as part of the Transgrid Queensland-NSW Interconnector (QNI) project.

“QNI is 90 % complete and we are on track to have all project works completed by May 2022,” said Transgrid’s Executive Manager of Delivery Craig Stallan, continuing, “Since the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) first recognised QNI as a priority in their 2020 Integrated System Plan, and work started later that year, we have increased the Tamworth substation footprint by 50 % to accommodate the technology required to help future-proof this part of our grid.”

The technology called Static Var Compensators, or SVCs, are vital in controlling reactive power flows on the grid, have been installed at Tamworth and Dumaresq substations.

A team of experts from Siemens Energy in India arrived in December 2021, and once their work is complete, the SVCs can be energised and tested. The project will then be handed over to AEMO for rigorous interregional testing.

Over 300 km of transmission lines have been upgraded to higher temperature ratings, which means they can now accommodate higher power transfers while maintaining statutory ground clearances for the higher temperatures. Furthermore, 58 transmission towers were replaced and 131 existing towers uprated as part of the project.

QNI also involves the installation of new capacitor banks, SVC transformers and associated 330 kV switch bays. The capacitor banks provide additional reactive power, while the SVC regulates the reactive power on the grid.

 

Source: Energy Magazine