In a major development, Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) announced that it has put into commercial operations (effective June 8, 2021), Monopole-1 of the bipolar ±320kV Pugalur-Trichur HVDC link, which is an extended component of the ±800kV HVDC Raigarh-Pugalur HVDC link.
PGCIL said that the Monopole-1 of the ±320kV bipolar HVDC link connecting the Pugalur HVDC station in Tamil Nadu and the North Trichur HVDC station in Kerala has started commercial operations, effective June 8, 2021. This pole will enable transfer of 1,000 mw. The overall ±320kV bipolar Pugalur-Trichur VSC-based HVDC system has a transmission capacity of 2,000 mw.
It may be recalled that Monopole-2 of this scheme was already commissioned on February 19, 2021. With this, the ±320kV Pugalur-Trichur VSC-based HVDC system has attained its full transfer capacity of 2,000 mw.
Project Background
In March this year, a joint venture of Siemens Energy and Sumitomo Electric completed connecting India’s first high-voltage direct current (HVDC) link featuring voltage-sourced converter (VSC) and DC-XLPE cable technology.
The 2,000-mw transmission system consists of two converter stations, which are connected via two links comprising DC-XLPE cable and overhead transmission lines. It enables the power exchange between Pugalur in Tamil Nadu and Trichur in Kerala, supporting transmission operator Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) to counter power deficit in India’s southern region and improve the grid stability.
Siemens Energy supplied the two converter stations for the ±320kV HVDC system while Sumitomo Electric was responsible for the XLPE HVDC cable system in the DC circuit.
In this 320kV link between Tamil Nadu and Kerala, there are overhead lines up to the Kerala territory. Within Kerala, wherever RoW constraints were encountered, PGCIL has laid underground EHV cables. Of the 153 km of total length, underground cables accounted for some 27 km (all in Kerala).
The Pugalur-Trichur link is an extension of the Raigarh-Pugalur bipolar link. The latter, with a transfer capacity of 6,000 mw, traverses around 1,750 km from Chhattisgarh to Tamil Nadu, passing through Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, en route.
The ±800kV bipolar Raigarh-Pugalur HVDC line will help India’s southern region importing power from the northern region. In view of the long-distance, it was decided to go in for HVDC technology. This line is fully commissioned.
(Featured photograph for illustration only)
