Japan’s Hitachi Energy selected to engineer the world’s longest underwater power line in Norway

March 14, 2022 in Companies, Energy, Foreign News, Technology & Telecoms by Editor

Project can be a useful benchmark for Uganda which wants to extend underwater power cables from the mainland to communities in Kalangala and Sigulu islands 

Global technology and power grids leader Hitachi Energy, has been selected by Aker BP, the Norwegian oil and gas exploration and production company, as technology partner for the NOAKA power-from-shore project off the Norwegian coast.

The 150negawatts transmission line will take power from the mainland over a 250km distance, to offshore oil production platforms operated by Aker BP. This will be the world’s longest power-from-shore AC connection in the world.

Hitachi Energy has been assigned to perform detailed front-end engineering and design (FEED) studies for a power quality solution that will enable the Aker BP operated NOA Fulla field and the Equinor operated Krafla field in the North Sea to be powered from the mainland. The contract awarded to Hitachi Energy includes an option to deliver the power quality solution when the FEED studies are completed.

Using power from the mainland grid, which is mainly renewable hydropower, minimizes NOAKA’s carbon footprint. To ensure the smooth, reliable and safe transmission of electricity to the offshore platforms, Hitachi Energy’s solution combines two pioneering power quality technologies – a high-performance STATCOM, called SVC Light^®, and thyristor-controlled series capacitors. The MACH™ control and protection system, will enable the two technologies to work in harmony as a single synchronized solution. This will be made possible by leveraging Hitachi Energy’s extensive and unique know-how in power quality solutions as well as its domain integration capabilities.

“We are delighted that Aker BP has selected our pioneering power quality solution, enabling this vital energy project to be powered with emission-free renewable energy,” says Niklas Persson, Managing Director of Hitachi Energy’s Grid Integration business. “This world-first solution will also enable progress toward mega-scale offshore renewable power installations, offering viable alternative pathways for connecting power from shore with AC over long distances.”

Lars Høier, Senior Vice President and Asset Manager for NOAKA at Aker BP says,”our ambition is to develop the NOAKA area with a minimum carbon footprint and a prerequisite for this is that the fields are supplied with power-from-shore. We selected Hitachi Energy as our technology partner to provide a reliable and flexible grid connection and power quality solution to secure high reliability in our operations.”

Hitachi Energy’s proposed solution comprises a new grid connection to house the STATCOM, thyristor-controlled series capacitors, shunt reactors and gas-insulated switchgear. The solution will also increase the transmission capacity of an existing 420 kV mainland grid connection with new gas-insulated switchgear and a power transformer. These are all technologies made by Hitachi Energy to secure exceptional levels of grid availability and reliability.

Hitachi Energy supplied the world’s first long-distance power-from-shore installation in Norway in 2005 using its HVDC Light^® high-voltage direct current technology. Since then, Hitachi Energy has supplied four of the five HVDC power-from-shore installations, all of which supply platforms off the Norwegian coast. In December 2021, Hitachi Energy won a contract to supply the most powerful power-from-shore solution in the Middle East and North Africa. The solution will deliver 3,200 MW of low-carbon power to two offshore production clusters, reducing the clusters’ emissions by up to 35 percent.

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