News at STRI
November 24, 2009 - STRI20/20/20 Smart Grids for a Green Future
2009 STRI is celebrating our 20 years anniversary in the "High Voltage Valley" of Ludvika. Anyone remembers 1989? When we did not have Internet, no Skype or DVD, no mobile cell phones and the PC had DOS. During these 20 years we have had a fast development within both HV technology and ICT –Information & Communication. Now we are facing an even greater challenge that some call a new industrial revolution. How shall we build a sustainable and "green" society according to the 2020 goals from EU and how will our power system look like 20 years from now? Welcome back to the future!
These questions were discussed on a seminar at STRI in October together with the celebration of the 20 years anniversary with around 40 participants from ABB, Svenska Kraftnät, Statnett and Vattenfall. Henrik Stomberg kicked off the seminar where STRI CEO Dan Wikström started with a review over the last twenty years within high voltage technology. A development with higher voltages and more use of composite material with projects such as a 400 kV compact transmission line structure and a unique testing facility for the first 800 kV UHVDC in the world. STRI is today more active Internationally including system studies for ESKOM, South Africa, testing of the first 800 kV UHVDC transmission line for Power grid India as well as wind- an power quality studies for the Independent System Operator NOSBiH in Bosnia Herzegovina.
Bo Normark from Power Circle and Carl Öhlén from STRI focused on the future and how we in the electric power sector can "save the world" from global warming. The theme was "Smart Grids for a green future –challenges for 2020". Bo Normark pointed at the rapid growth of wind- and solar power as well as the possibilities with electrical vehicles. He also showed the ABB vision from 1992 with a sustainable Europe based on hydro, wind and solar power (from Sahara) as well as energy storage in hydrogen gas. This is now discussed for the DESERTEC project. Carl Öhlén described the same possibilities but pointed out that solar and wind energy still is less than 1% of the world energy. A massive increase of Distributed Energy Resources (DER) and electrical vehicles requires a smarter grid with more communication. Carl Öhlén described the scalable Smart grid model that STRI right now is building up in Ludvika with solar, wind, hydro and hydrogen as well as charging of electrical vehicles.
How will the Nordic power system look like in 20 years was the next point on the agenda. Vattenfall vision (Johan Söderbom), Statnett vision (Jan Ove Gjerde) and Svenska Kraftnät vision (Sture Larsson) all pointed in the same direction. A powerful expansion of renewable energy for electric generation that will require the strengthening of the transmission grid and interconnections between different countries. Johan Söderbom stated that to meet EU’s climate commitments, optimal use of sustainable energy sources in electricity generation is needed and stressed that "Smart Grids" is the technology platform. Jan Ove Gjerde presented a vision of an HVDC based off-shore grid in the North Sea. Sture Larsson described the role of the Nordic Hydro as Real time balance regulation of wind variations, back up for low wind generation and Central European requests for the regulation capacity. He also concluded that efficient use of Energy/Electricity requires interaction between the central system operations duties and a dynamic use of electricity.
Olof Heyman presented the ABB global vision today and for the future. Strengthening of power transmission grids with more HVDC links to transmit hydro power over long distances and for interconnections between grids. STRI ended the seminar presenting three work stations on the new IEC61850 standard communicating over 100 MBps Ethernet. (Max Degerfält, Andrea Bonetti, and Anders Fahlström)
