Transpower sets up offshore wind farm converter (HVDC)

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUSLL12230420090526

Transpower sets up offshore wind farm converter

Tue May 26, 2009 11:47am EDT

VLISSINGEN, May 26 (Reuters) - A new type of converter station for wind power that enables electricity to travel over long distances is set to be installed near the site of an offshore wind farm in the North Sea in the next few days.

On a barge in the Dutch harbour of Vlissingen, waiting to be pulled out to sea, the 60 metre-high base towered over workers soldering, hammering and carrying equipment into the 3,500 tonne electricity converter station it will support.

The 300 million euro ($413.6 million) project is operated by Transpower, a division of German utility E.ON EONG.DE. It will convert alternating current (AC) from the wind farm into direct current (DC) so it can travel 200 km (124 miles) to Germany.

Connecting to the BARD Offshore 1 wind farm, the platform will be able to convert up to 400 megawatts of wind energy, enough to power a small town. It could also be extended in future and connected to another converter station.

…

[NYC_SKP]

1. I always thought that AC was preferred for transmission with less loss.

The article seems backwards on this point.

:shrug:

[OKIsItJustMe]

2. Yeah, HVDC turns that equation on its head

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HVDC

… For long-distance distribution, HVDC systems are less expensive and suffer lower electrical losses. …