Client: Belectric
CTP Scope:
Review of Design, Grid Protection, Compliance Assessment
Timeframe:
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Design Phase – Jan 2013 – July 2013
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Construction Phase – Oct 2013 – Feb 2014
Project Goal:
To review the Belectric standard PV design template for ground mount installations and adapt to ensure compliance with Australian Standards and conditions as well as the local DNSP’s requirements.
Project Challenges:
The site is over 20km from the nearest substation. Voltage issues on the network initially limited the system size to 2.5MW. Through a detailed Network Technical Study, CTP designed a power factor control strategy that facilitated an additional 1MW of capacity.
Project Results:
- Successfully adapted the system to comply with relevant Australian standards. Australia is one of the first countries in the world to implement a specific engineering standard that deals with DC side of a PV system (AS5033).
- Determined grid protection and SCADA requirements of Powercor, the local DNSP, in order to design the grid-connection station. This required the development of a PSS Sincal network simulation model to determine thermal capacity, voltage and power factor impacts on the local electricity grid.
- CTP oversaw the construction and installation of the grid-connection station (see Utility PV Solutions for further details). This was successfully commissioned allowing the safe operation of the PV generation in parallel with the grid.
- System cost was analysed alongside risk, efficiency and a detailed supplier and product evaluation against shortlisted options in order to finalise the system design and specification.
- The system was the largest sized PV plant connected to the Powercor network at the time of commissioning.
Testimonials:
Nir Bekel, CEO Belectric Australia
“Having a streamlined process and expertly executed support is imperative, particularly for large commercial projects. Clean Technology Partners made what could have been a very slow and difficult process, very easy, manageable and above all successful “
