| Transmission & distribution Xlinks finds new investors, but costs rise


Xlinks has announced the launch of a statutory public consultation on updated proposals for the UK element of its planned Morocco–UK Power Project. The project is expected to generate 11.5 GW of zero-carbon electricity from the sun and wind in south Morocco, complemented by energy storage, which will be connected to the UK national grid at Alverdiscott, Devon, UK, via 4000 km of subsea HVDC cables to provide 3.6 GW of “affordable, reliable and renewable power to the UK” (about 8% of Britain’s current electricity needs). The consultation, running from 16 May to 27 June 2024, should be the final round of consultation before Xlinks submits an application for a Development Consent Order (ie, planning permission) for the parts of the project located in the UK.


Xlinks First Limited, the investment company established by Xlinks Limited to deliver the Morocco–UK project has recently announced that GE Vernova has invested $10.2 million in the project as a minority stakeholder “to further accelerate delivery and buildout.”


It joins other significant investors from the energy sector, including TAQA, TotalEnergies, and Octopus Energy, as well as AFC (Africa Finance Corporation), which is investing $14.1 million in the project. Xlinks First has recently updated its guidance on project construction costs and strike price. As of April 2024, estimated construction cost is £22-24 billion and estimated strike price is in the range £70-80/MWh (2012 pricing). Xlinks notes that “there has been significant upward pressure on the cost of all energy projects” and “the increase in the Xlinks’ guidance on the Morocco–UK power project strike price is broadly in line with what we are seeing in CfD estimations.” This is driven by macroeconomic effects, the company says: the impact of global events on the supply chain accounts for around 60% of the change, driven by a myriad of factors, including market-wide increases in raw material and energy costs, as well as a global increase in demand for renewables, while approximately 40% of the change “relates to direct macroeconomic


effects, with interest rates responsible for the vast majority of this change.” Xlinks says it “continues to optimise the project…but the impact of this has been de minimis compared to the effect of macroeconomic changes.” Nevertheless, Xlinks says it remains 100% committed to delivering the project in the next decade.


While Xlinks First is fully focused on the UK market, Xlinks Ltd is evaluating the feasibility of links to other markets, including Germany – “it is not either or, but in addition to,” the company says.


Patents aim to unlock multi-vendor multi-terminal HVDC networks


The Ofgem funded National HVDC Centre is leading HVDC multi-vendor terminal development (aka the ‘Interoperability Package’) within Project Aquila.


AC system SPITAL AC - DC converter


HVDC switching station


Multi-vendor, multi terminal opportunities for connection


PETERHEAD


The goal of Project Aquila is to develop a multi- terminal, multi-vendor DC hub, including HVDC switching station, in Peterhead, establishing the foundations for DC grids in GB. The Peterhead DC hub will reduce the need for onshore converter stations, thereby minimising costs, and environmental impacts.


SCOTLAND


Peterhead DC hub and Project Aquila Eastern Green


Link (EGL) 2: Drax


Eastern Green Link (EGL) 4: South Humber


Project Aquila, kicked off in July 2022, has generated intellectual property related to multi-vendor interoperability and multi-terminal operations. The National HVDC Centre says by patenting this IP, “we aim to ensure that this common interoperable control strategy is equally available to all vendors, enabling multi-terminal


grids to be developed.”


Three patents have been filed, covering the control, operability and stability of multi-vendor multi-terminal HVDC networks.


These patents provide a world-first means of “unlocking” the operation of such networks says the National HVDC Centre.


The mission of the National HVDC Centre, based in Cumbernauld, Scotland, is to derisk HVDC for deployment in the UK. It is owned and operated by SSEN (Southern & Scottish Electricity Networks), aka Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission. Further reading: National HVDC Centre Newsletter, April 2024


Transforming the transformer business


Hitachi Energy says it is investing over $1.5 billion to ramp up its global transformer manufacturing capacity “to keep pace with the growing demand and support long-term plans and electrification efforts.”


“The demand for transformers and electrical equipment has grown at an unprecedented scale, and we are investing to address our customers’ mid- and long-term needs,” said Bruno Melles, Managing Director of the Transformers Business at Hitachi Energy, during the company’s customer event, Energy & Transformer Days, held in Rome, Italy. Investment projects include around $180 million for a new state-of-the-art transformer factory in the Vaasa region, Finland, described


as a “top-notch 30 000 square meter campus” and a $30 million upgrade of transformer production at the Bad Honnef facility in Germany.


Hitachi Energy has also announced a $100 million upgrade programme for power transformer facilities in Quebec, Canada, with partial funding from the government of Quebec. Additional investments are expected to follow elsewhere in Europe, the Americas, and Asia to meet the growing demand for power and distribution transformers.


Hitachi Energy’s current transformer facility expansions include an ongoing project in South Boston, Virginia, USA, and recently completed projects at Jefferson City, Missouri, USA, and


Dos Quebradas, Colombia. In addition, the company has inaugurated new cutting-edge factories in Chongqing, China, and Hanoi, Vietnam, together with a new transformer service centre in Welshpool, Australia. Hitachi Energy describes itself as “the world’s largest transformer manufacturer in terms of installed base, portfolio range, manufacturing capacity, and market coverage,” with over 60 transformer factories and service centres across the world.


Earlier this year Siemens Energy said it was addressing the national shortage of power transformers across the USA by investing $150 million to expand operations in Charlotte, North Carolina.


www.modernpowersystems.com | May 2024 | 27


Interconnetor (Northconnect) to Norway


Morocco


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