TenneT and MR put grid stabilization system into operation

2022-10-13 MR

Maschinenfabrik Reinhausen in Regensburg has been developing and building MSCDN systems worldwide for 24 years

New MSCDN plant at TenneT's Schwandorf substation will in future take over tasks previously performed by fossil-fuel power plants, and stabilize the transmission grid

TenneT draws on Bavarian expertise and creates added value in the region with an investment volume of around EUR 2.5 million

The phasing out of nuclear power and coal, the increasing demand for electricity and the necessary expansion of renewable energies pose major challenges for the Bavarian energy system. The backbone of the energy supply is the extra-high voltage grid, which ensures the transport of renewable energies from north to south as well as the integration of regionally generated green electricity. The linchpins are transformer substations that link the transmission network - the highways, so to speak - with the subordinate distribution networks - i.e. the rural and urban roads. Together with power lines, substations are a decisive factor in the success of the energy transition and in ensuring that Germany and Bavaria remain strong industrial locations with reasonable energy costs.

The Schwandorf substation is the supply center for the Upper Palatinate region and is currently being modernized during ongoing operations to make it fit for the energy transition. TenneT is investing a total of around 68 million euros in the Schwandorf substation, including 2.5 million euros in a new MSCDN system from Maschinenfabrik Reinhausen in Regensburg.

The main task of the plants is to provide static reactive power, which is used in stages for reactive-power control and voltage control. At the same time, the systems can improve the voltage quality and dampen resonances in the grid. The plants have many advantages such as low losses, economic efficiency and high availability.

This so-called reactive power must be available in a stable and uniform manner and was previously provided by fossil power plants. With the phase-out of nuclear power and coal, these rotating generators are gradually becoming fewer and, due to the increasing feed-in of renewable energies, the voltage in the power grid is subject to ever greater fluctuations that have to be absorbed by the transmission system operators.

Only with the right ratio of active to reactive power can current flow at all in an AC voltage network. It is needed to build up and dissipate a magnetic field 50 times per second and thus to maintain the voltage during current transport. If there is too much reactive power in the network, less active power is transported; if there is too little reactive power, the voltage drops and power supply disturbances can occur. With the MSCDN system, TenneT can effectively absorb the voltage fluctuations in the substation and thus stabilize the operation of the transmission grid.

On Thursday, 6 October 2022, Tim Meyerjürgens, Managing Director of TenneT Germany, and Wilfried Breuer, Managing Director of Maschinenfabrik Reinhausen, symbolically commissioned the new MSCDN plant. Tim Meyerjürgens said, "Every milestone reached and every partial commissioning helps us to achieve the ambitious climate policy goals of Bavaria, to integrate more renewables into the grid, to make supply security affordable, secure and sustainable, and also to make ourselves more and more independent of fossil fuels and electricity imports by using renewables. In implementing the energy transition, we are also dependent on innovative developments and the production of highly complex technology components. TenneT can draw on years of experience and know-how from Bavarian companies, such as here at the Schwandorf substation. That's why not only grid expansion is taking place in Bavaria, but Bavarian industry is also benefiting from the energy transition."

MR Managing Director Wilfried Breuer added: "As a medium-sized global market leader from the Upper Palatinate, we are particularly pleased to be able to contribute our many years of global experience in the control of electrical load flows to the energy transition near our home base of Regensburg. With our innovations and services, MR is also represented in SüdLink, SüdOstLink as well as many other major projects in the German transmission grid. For 25 years, our team of specialists from Thuringia has been designing and constructing power quality plants such as this MSCDN worldwide and, together with our partner Omexom, has ensured reliable completion on schedule here in Schwandorf. The best proof of the satisfaction of our customer TenneT are two follow-up orders, which will also advance the energy transition in Germany."

TenneT is aware of its responsibility and important role as Germany's largest transmission system operator and is therefore investing at least 60 billion euros in the energy transition by 2030. In Bavaria alone, TenneT is investing 500 million - 1.5 billion euros a year in grid expansion by 2030. In addition to ten grid expansion projects in Bavaria, TenneT is also renewing and optimizing numerous substations. 40 percent of TenneT's annual investment volume in Bavaria therefore flows into the modernization and new construction of Bavarian substations. In doing so, TenneT also draws on years of experience of Bavarian companies and strengthens regional economic cycles. An important and world-leading supplier, for example, is Maschinenfabrik Reinhausen from Regensburg.