Power and automation technology group ABB has further expanded its global Power Consulting business by establishing a new team at its site in Stone, Staffordshire to meet the growing demand for its services in the UK.
Globally, ABB’s Power Consulting team is a key element within ABB’s Power Systems services and solutions portfolio, providing advanced technical expertise to electrical utilities, system operators, independent power producers and industrial electricity users.
The team offers new approaches and solutions in areas like transmission systems, HVDC (high voltage direct current), FACTS (Flexible alternating current transmission systems), system controls, energy efficiency, power market analysis, asset evaluation, industrial systems, system and equipment design and selection, integrated T&D (Transmission and Distribution) planning, renewable integration, power quality, smart grids and grid code compliance. Most importantly, the team is able to offer a unique combination of technical and economic perspectives.
Leading the Power Consulting team at Stone is Dr Fahd Hashiesh, ABB Power Systems technology manager who said: “As the UK’s power infrastructure and markets continue to evolve, it is becoming more important than ever to have both a thorough understanding of the complex and highly technical regulatory landscape and a strategy for dealing with it. That’s where our Power Consulting team comes in, providing the expertise, tools and detailed models to ensure, for example, that new grid connections are fully grid code compliant, eliminating the risk of heavy penalties or missed opportunities.”
Finding the best solutions
ABB Power Consulting operates independently of ABB product groups, enabling customers to find the very best recommendations and solutions for their particular enterprises. ABB’s broad product and services portfolio actually enhances this independence by eliminating the specific consideration for any particular ABB offering.
The UK Power Consulting team has already enjoyed a major success as part of ABB’s ongoing project for Vattenfall to build the grid connection for the Pen y Cymoedd Wind Energy Project, which will be the largest onshore wind farm in England and Wales when it enters operation in 2016. Load flow analysis and relay coordination has played a key role in designing the substation protection and control systems and STATCOM solution to control and regulate the output of the wind turbines, ensuring they remain within the rigorous power quality standards designated by the National Grid’s Grid Code.
