UK – 100 kW Wind Turbine with Load Management

GridGEM Enables Remote Wind Turbine, Managing Constraints Directly & with Load Management

Overview & Client Problems

Northern Power Systems (http://www.northernpower.com/) contracted Argand Solutions to design & supply our GridGEM constraints management solution to enable the connection of a 100kW wind turbine at the site of one of their Scottish clients. The site had a 50 kW Grid export constraint.

This complexity of the project was due to the requirement to manage on-site loads prior to any management of the wind turbine’s output plus the remote location in terms of communicating and analysing data for the client.

The DNO would not allow the project to go ahead unless the combination of load management and turbine management met the G100 requirements.

Argand’s Solution

Argand designed, built and delivered a turnkey GridGEM export limitation & load control solution for the project. The solution had to combine both load management and wind turbine control. The GridGEM provided a control interface to the specified loads to be turned on as the net power at the site approached the Grid constraint as a primary response. The secondary response was then to tether the turbine down to ensure that the Grid constraint was maintained within the DNO limits - as defined by the G100 regulation.

Client Benefits

The result has been to enable the client to install the wind turbine without constraining the maximum output at all times. This means that the turbine has benefitted the client optimally.

The project could only have supported a 50kW turbine without the GridGEM solution. This has meant that the project has been able to take place - leading to significant electrical energy cost savings and CO2 reductions at the site.