Standard content for Members only
To continue reading this article, please login to your Utility Week account, Start 14 day trial or Become a member.
If your organisation already has a corporate membership and you haven’t activated it simply follow the register link below. Check here.
National Grid has connected Statkraft’s latest greener grid park to the electricity transmission network in Liverpool, allowing the latter to provide green inertia services to the grid.
The greener grid park, located at Statkraft’s Lister Drive site, is now operational and its specialised synchronous compensators and flywheels are supplying stability services to help National Grid Electricity System Operator (ESO) manage system frequency.
Inertia refers to the resistance of the electricity system to changes in frequency, an inherent characteristic of conventional synchronous generators such as coal and gas plants whose turbines naturally act as shock absorbers for the system.
When there is a loss of load, the kinetic energy stored in the turbines is instantly released onto the grid, preventing a sudden drop in frequency.
Yet as the UK moves towards net zero system stability services need to be provided in newer, greener ways.
Construction at the site began in 2021, and the project has now been handed over to Statkraft for operation, with long-term maintenance services provided by ABB, whose UK team is based in Warrington.
ABB has also been responsible for the delivery and installation of the greener grid park’s specialised equipment.
Work undertaken by National Grid included installing a new disconnecting circuit breaker and upgrading the protection and control software at its substation adjacent to Statkraft’s site.
It also involved running a new 275kV cable between the sites to make the transmission network connection.
Lister Drive is Statkraft’s second greener grid park to become operational, following the site at Keith in Moray last year. The company also has contracts with the ESO for two further greener grid parks in Scotland, and three in England and Wales.
The site at Lister Drive is close to where the old Lister Drive power station was located.
The former fossil fuel plant was the main power station serving the city throughout much of the 20th century, and was the first plant in the UK to be built with the hyperboloid cooling towers.
Mark Brindley, National Grid’s project director for northern regions, said: “It’s great to see projects that will make a real difference in creating a net zero power system come to fruition, so we’re pleased to be able to make it happen by providing a grid connection via our Lister Drive substation.
“It’s apt that Lister Drive should be a site for this new green technology providing essential stability services to the grid, given its historical significance for energy generation in Liverpool. It’s now playing a key role in helping Britain harness increasing volumes of renewable power into the future.”
Kevin O’Donovan, Statkraft’s UK managing director, said: “Our greener grid parks are a vital part of the energy transition, so it’s an important milestone that Lister Drive is now operational.
“If we don’t need to burn coal and run fossil fuel power stations, just to provide stability to the grid, it means fewer harmful emissions are being released into the air, and consumers are saving money, because renewable energy is cheaper.
“That’s why greener grid parks are critical to ensure our electricity infrastructure is fit for the challenges of the future.”
Please login or Register to leave a comment.