AC Offshore substation

Karthick P
1
1. Offshore Substation introduction
2. How Offshore wind farm works
3. How Offshore substation is built
4. Sample SLD & Layout
5. How to Select AC or DC Substation
6. Notes to consider for offshore Substation design
7. Notes for offshore Substation Equipment’s
- Transformer
- GIS
- Export / Inter array cable
8. Fire and explosion
9. Protection philosophy
10. Testing and commissioning procedure

2
Offshore Substation introduction:

The wind farms are constructed in bodies of water, usually in the

ocean, to harvest wind energy to generate electricity. Higher wind speeds
are available offshore compared to on the land, so offshore wind power’s
electricity generation is higher per amount of capacity installed. The offshore
wind are strong during the day time when customer demand is at its highest
which allows for stable production of energy.

Global cumulative offshore substation capacity:

Installed capacity as on 2019 – 28.1 GW

Expected capacity on 2050 – 1550 GW

Europe is the world leader in offshore

wind power, with the first offshore wind
farm Vindeby being installed in Denmark
in 1991.

3
Offshore Substation introduction:

Largest offshore wind farm is Hornsea-1 with 1218MW capacity and commissioned in 2020 (Source:4offshore.com)

Abundance of resources:
Offshore wind can provide high amount of clean and renewable energy to generate more than 420 000TWh per year
worldwide.

Offshore wind technical potential and electricity demand, 2019 (Source: iea.org)

4
Offshore Substation introduction:
Renewable Energy:- Courtesy: IRENA_Renewable_Energy_Statistics_2020

“ By 2030, the Asian offshore market is expected to have installed nearly 100 GW of offshore wind capacity, according
to the Global Offshore Wind Report 2019 published by GWEC (Global Wind energy council)earlier this year.”

5
Offshore Substation introduction:

Global-Offshore-Wind-Potential ( Data as on May 2020)

6
How offshore wind farm works:

AC Offshore substation Typical: * Normally connected 40-175 nos

of WTG (Wind Turbine Gen)
* Each array string will connect
approx. 6 to 12 WTG
* The height of the wind turbine
approx. 250 meters from base to
the tip of their blades.
* Capacity of each turbine shall
be 6 to 8 MW, near-future 10MW
Evolution of wind turbine heights and output
,>8-10years 12MW.
* Operating voltage at the WTG
end is 20kV to 72kV and towards
onshore 72kV to 245kV for AC
system.
* Life the of the substation
around 30 years.

WTG Section 7
How offshore wind farm works:

Courtesy: Orstid ( Developer of wind energy_Denmark) 8

How We Works:

Flow of Work in offshore substation

Consulting Engineering Project Logistics Civil works, installation, testing

Service
and studies and design management and procurement and commissioning

Plan Execute Maintain

FEED EPCI

No standard design nor winning solution is available today.

FEED – Front End Engineering Design

EPCI – Engineering Procurement Construction and Installation
9
 10
Main design driving parameter (hard constraints)
Derived (dependent) design parameter

Reactive Power
comp. export cable
yes no
Export cable
voltage kV
220

170

110

66

Array grid
voltage kV
110

66

33

Earthing concept
Combined Separate
earthing with aux Tr. earthing
Transformer
shunt reactor
OFWF ODAF /OFAF ONAN cooling type
Transformer type
3-winding 2-winding
Base Solution / Key factor - AC Offshore Substation

Number of power
transformers
2

HV Busbar
scheme
ring double single
Total system
99.9%

99%

95%
availability (%)
Number of export
1+1 Cables per platform

1
Decision sequence

Number of array
Cables to platform
4

1
Platform
floating concept
fix
How We Works:

Number of
platforms

1
Distance to shore
from platform

60km -
-80km

-60km

-20km
20km-

0-
Wind Farm Total
Power

1600

1200

800

400
How We Works:

Modularized building blocks

Control Room and

High Voltage Medium Voltage
SAS Module
GIS Modules Module

• Pre-fabricated modules are brought to site and easily connected

• All feeders are HV pre-tested in the factory, minimized HV testing on site
• Target a as much as possible completed wiring for fast commissioning

11
How offshore substation is built:

Different types of support structure:

12
How offshore substation is built:

WTG and Offshore

substation

J- Tube

13
How offshore substation is built:

14
SLD_ 400MW Offshore substation ( With 2 winding transformer_ Typical 1 )

PDF Document

SLD

15
SLD_ 750MW Offshore substation ( With 3 winding transformer_ Typical 2 )

PDF Document

SLD

16
Layout Plan : Topside structure:

Lower desk offshore substation Upper desk offshore substation

1 ,Transformer 220/33kV . 4 ,Diesel Generator 7, SCADA 10,Social Room

2, 220kV GIS switchgear 5, Emergency switchgear 8, 0.4kV Switchboard 11,Heat and ventilation
3, 33kV GIS Switchgear 6, Workshop and storage 9,Battery system

17
Types of AC Offshore substation

Customer substation Hub system substation

Customer substations – used for exporting power from a Hub system substations – Two or more HV (or EHV) cable
single wind farm. Customer substations are collector sub- lines exporting power from individual wind farms are
stations which receive MV transmission cables comprising connected to the hub substation radially
the wind farm’s inter-array cable network

18
How to Select of AC or DC Substation

Typical Offshore Wind Grid Connection arrangements

AC DC

19
How to Select of AC or DC Substation

Investment Costs comparison of AC vs DC Cables

* The cable length above which HVDC transmission becomes

more economic than HVAC transmission is called the AC/DC
break-even point.
* Currently, this break-even point is between 50km to 120 km
depending on wind power plant size and several other factors
* For higher voltages AC cables produce a lot of reactive
power, limiting the active power transport capacity.
* The comparison changes all the time due to the development
of HVDC and cable technology.
* The break-even distance is also influenced by the price of
copper and aluminum as it is the cost of cables that defines the
slope of the curves in the diagram.

“ Some innovative solutions are being considered such as Gas Insulated Lines or High Temperature
Superconducting Cables, which could provide bulk power transmission over large distances.”

20
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

* 30 – 40 % is the average generation capacity for the wind plant

* Requirement of redundancy in cables & HV Equipment's will be decide by client
* Simple Economic comparison formula to understand the loss of generation over the lifetime of the plant
Lost Generation (MWh) = MTTR x r x G
Where MTTR- is the mean time to repair (in hours)
r -is the probability of component failure
G- is the lost generation when component failure occurs (in MW)

21
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

Lightning Protection for the Platform

The lightning protection of the platform, dimensioning and
protection, is proposed to follow the instructions in code
EN/IEC 61024. (Class 1). The metallic structures on the
platform are used as both air termination system and down
conductors.

22
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

Earthing Protection for the Platform

All HV/MV equipment should be connected to a defined earthing

grid/system.

Platform equipment is normally earthed via the steel structure. For

all equipment EMC must be ensured. Each equipment should have
a least one earthing strap connected to the platform structure. For
critical equipment EMC calculations/simulations must be done.
German authorities are requesting a EMC measurement, done by a
recognized expert, as part of the operational permit requirements.
HSE requirements are also requesting suitable earthing methods
(avoid step potentials).

Earthing of the platform is normally ensured by the piles, piled into

the sea bed.

23
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

* Personal aspects:- To ensure the safety of the personnel who need to operate and maintain the substation
 Transport to and from the substation / Transport at each end
 Emergency evacuation / Fire & Explosion
 Restricted working area due to compact design, etc…
 Exposed locations on the substation platform (walkways and staircases)
 Electrical hazards when testing or operating
 Loss of services such as lighting, heating or communications
* Operational Aspects :- Following operational risks may be encountered
 Depletion of protection systems
 Fouling of cooling or ventilation system intakes and exhausts
 Due to spare parts unavailability
* Commercial Aspects :- Following commercial considerations may have an impact upon design decisions
 Loss of production
 Insurance costs /claims for accidents
 Transport / repair equipment costs

24
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

Maintenance:-
Any activity to be carried out on an offshore substation platform will typically
cost approximately ten times that of a similar activity carried out onshore.

 Accessibility within the Substation of Equipment Needing Repair

 Equipment Tagging

 Diagnostics and Communications to allow Focused Maintenance

 FMECA Maintenance Planning

 Minimizing the Need for Routine Maintenance

 Over Designing to Reduce Unplanned Maintenance

 Availability of Suitable Transport for Staff, Equipment and Spare Parts

 Availability of Maintenance Specialists with Offshore Training

25
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

Verification and Certification:-

Developer of the substation will perform a number of verification & certification activities
 National and international health & safety requirements, best industry practice, internal
quality system or independent , 3rd party verification & etc..
 For certification electrical requirement details IEC 61400-22 to be followed.
Engineering Design Studies and Design Basis
E.g Verify the study for fire protection, incl. detection, fire escape and fire extinguishing systems.
Structures, Foundation and Systems Fabrication and Components.
E.g Verifying the corrosion protection such as coating and cathodic protection.
Transportation and Installation Phase.
For insurance claim the Marine Warranty Certificate
Commissioning Onshore and Offshore
This certificate focus on ensuring the completeness of the installation.
Operation and Maintenance Phase.
Condition monitoring programs that ensure timely preventive maintenance

26
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

System Considerations:-
Some general guidelines to maximize the revenue as below,
 No redundancy of expensive and/or reliable components
 Optimization of offshore installation and maintenance work
 Smart planning of maintenance (prevention rather than repairs)
 Maximize availability in terms of energy transmission (not time)

Reliability, Availability and Maintenance (RAM) : -

Availability:-
* When no energy production, there is little need for high availability
but in times of high wind and energy production, availability is
extremely important.
*Curve shows that there are almost 1000 hours a year with no
power production due to too much or too little wind.

27
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

Redundancy:-
Redundancy in a system is a cost versus risk decision, risk is
determined by the chance of failure of a certain component and
the impact of failure of a certain component.
* Cost of redundancy is usually higher than for onshore installations.
* Redundancy shall not be available for high cost equipment like
Transformer, cable, etc. , however in some cases the overloading
capacity will be considered in the equipment
* High risk devices like Secondary equipment , Communications,
HVAC and cooling systems shall have redundancy.
* Inter array Cable Considerations
* Export Cable Considerations
* Interconnecting Wind Power Plants

28
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

Point of Common Coupling :-

Logical connection point for application of grid codes would be the location where the wind power plant is
actually connected to a grid node.

Situation 1
Recommended PCC for single wind power plant situation

Situation 2
Recommended PCC for multiple wind power plant situation with Offshore TSO

29
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

Grid Code Requirements:-

System operators determines which should be the desired power factor , Voltage stability and Minimum
reactive power contribution according to the grid load level. Therefore, during high load periods capacitive
behavior is required while the opposite for low load periods.

Fault ride through:

Low voltages can be caused by faults in the network.
Grid codes define a minimum time in which the turbine
should stay connected to the grid in case of certain
voltage dips
Frequency response:
To maintain a stable grid frequency, When frequency
is low, production will increase, when frequency rises,
production should decrease
Voltage and reactive power:
Wind power plants are normally required to be able
to perform continuous voltage control at the Point of
Common Coupling (PCC), with a Setpoint Voltage and
Slope characteristic as illustrated

30
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

Fault Level :-
What is the Limiting Factor on Fault Level?
* Use of three-winding transformers with secondary windings feeding split busbars to effectively split the number of
generators connected in parallel at the offshore AC substation.
* Use of substation transformers with higher impedance to reduce the system fault level contribution at the
generators’ point of connection.
* If a ring design is implemented in the collector strings, the cable impedance can be used to effectively increase
the loop impedance
Three Phase & Single phase faults:-
Currents for this type of fault are the highest met and used in the determination of the ratings of the circuit breakers
in the system.
Infeed from Grid System :-
The fault contribution from the upstream grid can be calculated from the PCC equivalent impedance and the cable and
transformer impedance, up to the fault point.
400 kV, 275 kV and 132 kV the 3 phase rms fault levels may be up to approximately 63 kA, 40 kA and 40 kA respectively.

Infeed from Wind turbines:-

The type of wind turbines (WT’s) used in the wind power
plant will determine the magnitude of fault contribution

31
Notes to consider for offshore Substation design

Systems Studies:-
In order to bring together all the relevant aspects in the complex process of designing large offshore wind power
plants, several system studies need to be carried out,
• Load Flow Study
• Short Circuit Study
• Harmonics Study
• Insulation Coordination Study
• Electromagnetic Transient Studies
• HV Export network transient studies
• Flicker and Voltage Fluctuation Study
• Dynamic Stability Study
• Safety Earthing Study
• Neutral Grounding Study
• Protection Coordination Study
• Electro Magnetic Field (EMF) Study

32
Notes for offshore Substation Equipment’s

In General:
Below are the guidance on how to write the technical specifications for the main electrical equipment to be
located on the offshore substation
o Parameters coming from the System Studies
-Short circuit level, full load current, lightning impulse withstand level, transformer impedance etc.

o Parameters Defined by the Operation and Maintenance Regime

-Any requirements for condition monitoring, need for special tools e.g. tap changer removal tools.

o Parameters Specific to the Type of Plant Itself

-Environmental considerations, vibration and transport forces, special technical considerations and physical
and interface requirements.

o Important Items to Define to the Platform Supplier associated with regard to the Accommodation for
the Equipment
-Supplier to define to the platform supplier specific requirements for the room in which the equipment is to
be accommodated

33
 Notes for offshore Substation Equipment’s
-Power transformer
* Secondary measurements such as temperature measurements, oil analysis and Frequency response assessment
(FRA). Monitoring the condition of key elements of the transformer is necessary particularly the insulating medium, the
cooling plant , DGA, breathers, bellows, barriers and the tap changer. ( Process and analysis software should be kept
onshore) .
* Vacuum switch tap changers are now available, which offer the less maintenance.
*Ambient temperature offshore is lower than onshore. This could bring significant savings not only on the cost of the
cooling equipment but also on the weight and size of the transformers.
* Waves hitting supporting structure continuously and gusts of wind generate
mechanical stress on the structure causing vibrations of various frequency and strength.
* The vibration of the transformer tank is at the fundamental frequency 100 or 120Hz
while operating. To limit this vibration “ Anti vibration isolator between the transformer
and platform” will be provided.
* Aramid ( Hybrid) insulation as per IEC/TS 60076-14 , the weight reduction is upto 25%
* Corrosion factors C5M
* Acceleration force limits for the equipment.
Temporary Bracing on a
Transformer for Sea Transportation

34
 Notes for offshore Substation Equipment’s
-Power transformer
Transformers could be located indoors to protect from the environment. Radiators should be located outside .
- Minimum amount of space around the transformers to permit all aspects of planned and unplanned operation,
maintenance and repair works
- Sufficient space must be allowed for handling of any large sized test equipment
- Access should be considered to permit maintenance of the tap-changer and fitting of the extraction tools
- Room dimensions and positioning of the transformer to provide suitable
escape routes and doors
- Ventilation systems to dissipate the heat from the Transformer tank
- Enclosure room needs to be constructed with an oil retaining bund which
would prevent any escape of oil from entering the sea.
- Oil containment tank must be suitably dimensioned to accept as a
minimum the full volume of oil from the largest oil filled device plus the full
volume of water from an automatic fire suppression system plus spare
capacity (suggest 15%)
- Enclosure room should contain a fire detection/alarm system & Fire rated
wall around
- Operation of Buchholz relays may experience problem during large
displacements: generally it should be noted that electromechanical auxiliary
relays can be sensitive to vibration.

35
 Notes for offshore Substation Equipment’s

-GIS
• Voltage transformer is equipped at the line side, the cable charge will be discharged through the voltage transformer.
The discharge current causes electro-magnetic force and temperature rise in the windings. The voltage transformer
must be designed so that it ensures mechanical force and thermal capacity of these discharges.

• Current transformer often located on both sides of the circuit breaker to eliminate the blind spot ,However in many
cases Current transformer located in one side to reduce the footprint of GIS
• The equipment will be subject to external forces due to the sea transport
and lifting. Equipment should tolerate such forces. Also to reduce such
forces during sea transport “ sea fastening” must be used.

• Switchgear design needs to allow for these and include any necessary
attachment points for fitting of external sea fastening straps.

• Recommended SF6 pressure within the switchgear during transport to be

given.

• Any unplanned operations requiring dismantling of switchgear

components the design of the room should consider the inclusion of a
simple overhead gantry crane.

36
Notes for offshore Substation Equipment’s

-GIS

• Cables pass through location to be effectively sealed against

the marine environment and to limit the spread of fire.

• Enclosure room should contain a fire detection/alarm system &

Fire rated wall around

• Suitable pressure relief devices built into the room to prevent

mechanical damage to walls, doors

• Independent SF6 gas detection system

• Ventilation system should incorporate maintainable salt filters

Temporary Bracing on GIS for

Sea Transportation

37
Notes for offshore Substation Equipment’s

- Power Cable
* IAC ( Inter array Cable) in the range of 20kV or 72kV

* Export cable in the rage of 110 kV, 132 kV, 150 kV or 220 kV. Above 220kV GIS
Line shall be feasible

* Main differences between export and array cables are that the export cables have
a metallic sheath of e.g. lead for water tightness, while the array cables are of the
wet design.

* Both array and export three-phase cables have integrated fiber optic cables (FOC).

* Fiber optic cable for use in the overall control and communications scheme.

38
Notes for offshore Substation Equipment’s

-Power Cable
* IAC & Export cables are to be installed on platforms
with hang-offs for the armouring and J-tubes often
with bend restrictors. For three-core cables, the
hang-off devices include a chamber for trifurcating the
cores located immediate above the J-tube.

* Special fiber optic cables that indicate the conductor

temperature of the cable with an accuracy of around 5
degrees K. These DTS ( Distributed temperature
sensing)-systems may give an indication of
overloading risks or failure/problems of the cable

* Thermal resistivity of the sea-bed is important as

ideally you try to bury the cables roughly half a meter
to one meter down in the sea-bed.

“ABB cables business has been sold to NKT in 2017”

39
Fire and Explosion Protection

Fire Protection
Main objectives of the fire and explosion protection system are to
− minimize the risk of fire and explosion
− automatically monitor, detect and give alarm in case of smoke, fires or
explosions
− minimize the propagation and consequences of a fire and/or explosion

Below are the possible sources of fire and explosion incidents.

- electrical equipment containing fluids, diesel generator, fuel tanks and
appliances

Passive fire protection

Includes separation of equipment in cells by graded fire walls and
floors

Active fire fighting systems are used to control or extinguish a fire (best
practice are listed in DNV-ST145) are foam, deluge, sprinkler, water mist
and inert gas system

40
 Fire and Explosion Protection

Explosion protection

Following explosion hazards could happen on offshore

transformer platforms

− Main (oil-filled) transformer tank bursting

− HV switchgear explosion

− Hydrogen explosion associated with battery charging

− Aviation fuel storage explosion

Where possible, the severity of an explosion should be

lowered by reducing the degree of congestion and by
increasing the availability of venting. For some areas, blast
walls could be an appropriate measure.

Image ref : From Oil & Gas offshore substation

41
Protection philosophy

Plant Protection
Detect faults and initiate disconnection of faulted equipment across three subsystems:-
The transmission connection to the on-shore substation which may comprise:
- Export cables
- EHV / MV transformers
- EHV shunt reactors
- EHV switchgear and busbars

The power collection system from the generators

- Protection of MV cables forming the collection system from each array
- MV switchgear and busbars
- Wind turbine generator transformers
- MV Reactive compensation

The auxiliary power system supplying the services of the platform

- Cable systems
- Auxiliary transformers
- Generators
- MV and LV switchgear and busbars

42
Protection philosophy

The Grid Code or site specific connection conditions may specify the maximum fault clearance times for back-up
protection at the Connection Point which are less than one second.

Tripping Philosophy
If a fault occurs on some upstream (HV) equipment the tripping normally takes out all downstream (LV) plant to avoid
this being left in the closed position when the voltage is restored at the HV end.

EHV cables:
2 independent Biased differential protection and incase of FO communication fails Distance protection will be
enabled as a Main protection. ( In normal operating condition the relay uses fibers in an adjacent cable).
Back up protection will be available at onshore substation.
Inter tripping schemes

EHV switchgear
Low / High impedance busbar Protection (Remote back-up protection for busbars to ensure that, in the event of
busbar protection failure, a remote-end busbar fault will be cleared within the switchgear internal arcing fault withstand
time.)

43
Protection philosophy

Transformer
Biased differential protection, HV / LV REF , Back up protection

Collection Array Protection

Distance protection with fault locators is becoming more common .Overcurrent and earth fault relays is
responsible for clearing faults located on its own string using a definite time characteristic.

MV Switchgear
Busbar protection shall be of Low impedance will be preferred for the MV Switchgear or Reverse Interlocked
Busbar Protection (RIBBP) which is an economical answer making the best use of the logic capabilities of modern
numerical relays.

In general Bus Section CBs are fitted with two directional relays one looking in each direction.

WTG
The main protection for the WTG transformer is provided by overcurrent and earth fault using a definite time
characteristic. The purpose of WTG CB is purely to protect for step up transformer faults.

44
Site Tests and Commissioning

The cost of carrying out any work offshore is approximately ten times the cost of the same activity performed
onshore.

Commissioning sequence:

Pre-energization Onshore Commissioning

On Site High Voltage Tests

Pre-energization Offshore Commissioning

High Voltage Tests for Power Cables

Post energization Commissioning

Document

45
Site Tests and Commissioning

Commissioning sequence:

Pre-energization Onshore Commissioning

Pre-commissioning can be broken down into the general areas of:

- Transformers
- Switchgear
- Building services (including lighting, heating and ventilation, CCTV, fire and safety systems)
- LV systems
- DC systems
- Scada and control systems
- Telecommunication (including VHF, UHF radios)

46
Site Tests and Commissioning

Commissioning sequence:

Pre-energization Offshore Commissioning

-Visual inspection to assess any damage, or obvious changes, to equipment conditions and contents
-Any alarms on equipment or the SCADA system and confirmation of the HVAC system operation.
-Extent of the acceleration forces
-Auxiliary generator
-Removal of any transportation bracing or temporary supports,
-Testing of platform and internal lighting,
-Erection of lightning masts and antenna
-Fitting of any ventilation units removed during sea transportation.
-Commissioning the UHF and VHF radios,
-Insulation resistance checks for primary equipment
-Functional and operational checks on the switchgear locally and from the SCADA system
-Tap changer operation and transformer auxiliaries (i.e. cooling fans)
-Fiber optic communication/CCTV/LAN network/Comm between onshore to offshore
-Comm for the protection system/inter-trip between offshore to onshore

47
Site Tests and Commissioning

Commissioning sequence:

High Voltage Tests for Power Cables :

- DC test on the over sheath,

- AC insulation withstand test:

Power Frequency Testing,

Very Low Frequency (VLF) Testing,

- Partial Discharge

48
Site Tests and Commissioning

Commissioning sequence:

Post Energization Commissioning :

Energization of Sub-Circuits

- Confirm all wind power plant equipment is ready for energization

- First energization of the connection assets located onshore.
- Energization of the subsea cable. The charging current of the cable can be used to prove the stability of the
onshore upstream differential protection.
- Perform Export cable test
- Energization of the HV switchgear
- Energization of first transformer including tap changer and soak test
- Energization of second transformer including tap changer and soak test
- Energization of 36 kV switchgear busbars and auxiliary transformer from HV system.
- Energization of WTG arrays and test.
- Carry out final commissioning control schemes on the offshore platform.
- Reconfigure power system to meet operational requirements

49
Site Tests and Commissioning

Commissioning sequence:

Post Energization Commissioning :

Transformers : Oil test / Dissolved gas test

Switchgear : Check the system and cable connections for any

signs or sounds of partial discharge.

Export Cables : any signs of overloading - visually and by

infra-red spectrum cameras

Diesel Generator: electrical interlocking system

Monitoring for Power Grid Connection Compliance

Commissioning

50
Further investigation are required in the below area,

Insulation co –ordination :
IEC standard does not identify switching impulse levels for equipment at voltages below 245 kV

Vibration:
IEC do not include any dedicated provisions for specification or type testing to demonstrate insensitivity to
prospective mechanical impacts to be seen by electrical apparatus on offshore platforms, such as wind gusts or wave
loads

Other interesting topics related to Offshore substation

 Floating substation

 Lightweight offshore substation

 Hydrogen from offshore wind

51
 Thank You & See You Again
Thank You

52