Sweden: Siltanews – News Desk
Digitalized power transformer for Fortum at Sweden’s tallest hydropower dam.
Fortum’s 120-meter tall Trängslet hydropower dam, in Österdalälven, central Sweden, is one of the country’s largest hydropower plants and it’s the tallest. Our transformer delivers enhanced performance for fossil-free electricity generation at the dam, in a challenging underground location.
With a normal annual electricity generation of 651 gigawatt hours (GWh), there can be no risk of breakdowns or generation stoppages.
The final 1,000 meters of the station’s access route is especially challenging, particularly in winter conditions, and in addition the electrical equipment is installed underground, via a steep slope and narrow entrance.
The original transformer, which was also supplied by Hitachi Energy (as ASEA), had been in operation for over 50 years and a one-to-one replacement was needed.
The company selected a 140 megavolt-ampere and 155/16 kilovolt TXpert™ enabled power transformer, designed as a copy of the original unit. Hitachi Energy’s TXpert™ transformers are equipped with digital devices to monitor and analyze their health, enhancing reliability and performance. The project included transportation as well as on-site installation and final assembly in this challenging location.
A one-to-one solution meant the transformer could be installed without costly electrical, mechanical or structural modifications. In fact, the new transformer is smaller than the old one because the modern technology requires less space, there is less oil in it and the losses are lower.
Plus the TXpert™ digital monitoring collects, compiles and analyzes critical data to ensure that the transformer continuously delivers optimal performance remotely monitored and controlled 370 kilometers away at Fortum’s operations center in Stockholm.