The project will connect the power station near Champa to the demand center at Kurukshetra through a 1,365km transmission line

October 12, 2015

Alstom has successfully manufactured and delivered India’s first 800 kV High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) power transformer for the prestigious Champa-Kurukshetra Ultra High Voltage Direct Current (UHVDC) Phase 1 link. The project will connect the power station of central India near Champa to the demand center, in northern India at Kurukshetra, through a 1,365km transmission line; creating an ‘energy superhighway’ of efficient power transmission.

This is the first out of nine power transformers for the project that has been built in Alstom’s largest transformer manufacturing and testing facility in India. The transformer, measured at 13m long, 5.3m high and 5.1m wide, weighs 310 tonnes. Once erected at site, it will weigh an additional 175 tonnes. The transformer travelled over three months to cover a distance of over 2,000 km to reach the project site at Champa. The second transformer, already dispatched, is expected to reach Champa by December 2015.

Patrick Plas, Senior Vice President, Grid Power Electronics and Automation, Alstom Grid said, “Alstom is delighted to have achieved such a significant milestone for this project. These massive transformers will substantially improve grid connectivity by seamlessly transferring power across 5 electrical regions of India. Alstom has been a key player in HVDC for over 50 years and the company is currently executing two 800kV UHVDC bi-pole projects in India. The 800kV HVDC transformers are locally manufactured from Alstom’s world class facilities and reinforce its leadership in the transformer market.”

For this turnkey project, Alstom will also deliver 32 converter transformers[1], 24 double Thyristors valves, 400/220 kV gas and air-insulated switchgear and substation equipment, including Alstom’s first AIS 800 kV high speed Direct Current (DC) switch. The turnkey work includes overall project management, studies, design, engineering, training, manufacture, civil works at site, site erection, testing and commissioning.

Alstom has delivered over 40 HVDC projects worldwide and is currently executing projects such as DolWin3 in Germany and Rio Madeira in Brazil.