DNV GL to Work on China’s First HVDC Offshore Wind Substation

Huadong Engineering Corporation, which plans to set up a 1.1GW wind farm off China’s Jiangsu Province, has contracted DNV GL to support feasibility studies for the project’s HVDC offshore substation, first of its kind in China.

DNV GL will provide technical trainings, advisory services and support on Huadong’s feasibility study on aspects of conceptual design and risk assessment for the high-voltage direct current (HVDC) offshore substation.

“Offshore HVDC transmission system is a new business for DNV GL China and the Asia Pacific region. So it is invaluable to be able to call on a partner such as DNV GL who brings global expertise in both HVDC technology and offshore engineering to the project. Their experience in these areas will be a critical factor in successfully delivering a major new wind farm so far from land to help China continue to lead the way in offshore wind generation,” said Haifeng Qi, President of Power China Huadong Engineering Corporation Limited Renewable Energy Corporation.

Since Huadong Engineering Corporation is planning for the 1.1GW offshore wind farm to be located some 90km off the coast of Jiangsu Province, a HVDC system is the way to go, since a high-voltage alternating current (HVAC) subsea connection would be inefficient in transporting large amounts of electricity over such long distances.

Therefore, the offshore wind farm will feature an offshore HVDC transmission system to export offshore power to the mainland, including offshore HVDC converter station, submarine cables and onshore HVDC converter station.

“Compared to onshore HVDC technology, offshore wind HVDC technology has more unique specifications, as a combination of both offshore wind and HVDC technology need to be applied in limited space in order to satisfy safety and functional requirements. DNV GL is pleased to work with the customer on this HVDC milestone project to accelerate the development of the local offshore wind industry based on our extensive offshore wind experience,” said Deng Pan, Head of Offshore Wind APAC, DNV GL – Energy.