STATCOM Technology for a Stable Electrical Grid
One of the challenges of transitioning to renewable energy sources is intermittency. Energy generated by solar panels and wind turbines can fluctuate in frequency and voltage, destabilizing the grid. With the growing reliance on electricity, its supply must be reliable, stable and predictable.
We are now at a tipping point in our clean energy journey where renewable energy is overtaking traditional energy sources to meet our electricity needs. Grid technology must keep pace.
Advanced grid-forming inverters are emerging as an essential tool for grid stability. They are playing a crucial role to allow utility operators to integrate more renewable, but intermittent, energy sources such as wind and solar, into the grid without introducing instability. Adding a Flexible Alternating Current Transmission Systems (FACTS) device called a Static Synchronous Compensator (STATCOM) with a grid-forming inverter and energy storage can improve the stability and increase the system strength by dynamically adjusting active and reactive power to counteract voltage and frequency changes in the power system.
In a traditional thermal power system, large rotating generators have the mass to continue rotating for a time even when power is interrupted. This stored power, or inertia, has traditionally acted as energy storage to compensate the load and generation imbalances during grid disturbances. As renewable energy replaces thermal energy, the grid must have enough inertia to ensure the grid remains stable if the system encounters a disturbance.
Last year, GE Vernova introduced a grid-forming inverter with leading-edge technology that solves both problems. FACTSFLEX GFMe with grid-forming inverters and energy storage combines voltage and frequency control capabilities with high-capacity energy storage. These inverters can immediately deliver significant amounts of reactive and active power, balancing the grid during and after a disturbance or a fault.
The supercapacitor-based energy storage is controlled to emulate inertia by injecting active power when the frequency lapses and absorbing active power to counteract the rise of frequency. The system can immediately deliver or absorb 150 MW (example) of power for several seconds, enough to prevent adverse escalation of the disturbance.
This is an exciting development for the acceleration of the energy transition. As more renewable energy comes online, these grid-forming inverters will be essential for reaching our global energy transition goals without sacrificing reliable, stable, and seamless electricity for all.
This article was written by GE Vernova's Philippe Piron, Chief Executive Officer, Electrification Systems