New South Wales (NSW) and Australian Capital Territory (ACT) transmission line operator Transgrid has completed a three year build of the Buronga substation providing a key backbone to its 900 kilometre (km) transmission line Project EnergyConnect linking NSW, South Australian and Victorian grids.
With construction partner infrastructure company Elecnor Australia the substation is 15 hectares (ha) in size comprising two 120 megavolt-ampere reactive (MVAr) synchronous condensers supplied by Austrian technology company Andritz Hydro Weiz.
Also included are five 200 MVA phase-shifting transformers, four 330 kV 60 MVAr shunt reactors, five 200 MVA step down transformers, three 200 MVA 330 / 220 kV power transformers, and two 330 kV 52 MVAr capacitor banks.
Image: Transgrid
Transgrid Major Projects Executive General Manager Gordon Taylor said Buronga substation’s capacity has increased from 150 MW to 800 MW following completion of the 540 kilometre (km) eastern section of the project between Buronga and Wagga Wagga.
“The Buronga substation is a true feat in design, engineering, construction and commissioning and is the first in the world to boast five phase-shifting transformers running in parallel, providing improved load sharing, increased grid stability, enhanced transmission capacity, and reduced congestion,” Taylor said.
Elecnor Australia’s EnergyConnect Project Director Felipe Delgado said the scale and engineering complexity of the substation is unlike anything else in Australia.
“Working alongside our delivery partners across civil, structural, mechanical and electrical disciplines, we overcame engineering challenges to integrate highly specialised equipment from around the world including phase-shifting transformers, synchronous condensers, capacitor banks and shunt reactors,” Delgado said.
Transgrid Commissioning Manager Robert Li said Buronga is like the peak of the Himalayas for the power energy industry in Australia.
“It creates a much more efficient power market for the energy consumers. It’s a very significant nation building project,” Li said.
Project EnergyConnect is Australia’s largest energy transmission project, critical to improving the reliability and security of the National Electricity Market (NEM) as aging coal-fired power stations retire.
The infrastructure will connect customers with more renewable energy enabling a further 4,950 MW of generation capacity.
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