Page 24 - Energize February 2022

NEWS

HVDC prototype research shows 100% renewable

energy grid is feasible

New HVDC prototype and powerful economic analysis make the case for a global energy grid based on
100% renewable energy

esearchers at the Birmingham Energy Institute are working with the C-EPRI Electric
Power Engineering Ltd (C-EPRI), to build an industrial scale prototype of a next-
Rgeneration HVDC technology that could pave the way for a global electricity grid,
based on renewable energy.
A team led by Professor Xiao-Ping Zhang, Director of Smart Grid at the University of
Birmingham, will be using innovations developed at Birmingham, that improve the reliability
and efficiency of high-voltage, direct current (HVDC) power transmission systems, which are
used for the bulk transmission of electrical power.
The researchers recently published an economic analysis demonstrating that coupling
HVDC transmission with 100% renewable energy generation can deliver significant cost-
savings (a minimum of 20%) when the world’s continents are joined together by a global
energy supply grid.
Their vision for the global grid involves connecting renewable energy supply from 14
regions in the world, which span all continents and all time zones. Professor Xiao-Ping Zhang
The regions comprise: the European Union, North Africa and the Middle East, Eastern
Russia, Western Russia, Central, South, East and South East Asia, Oceania, Western, Eastern Professor Zhang has championed
and North-eastern North America and South America. the concept of a global energy grid and
Professor Zhang commented: “The prototype, based on our theoretical model, is now has developed several technologies
under development and our research aims to increase the availability of renewable energy to overcome the practical challenges
- by improving the efficiency and reliability of transmission to reduce costs for householders involved in the transition to renewable
and businesses. It’s important that we can use renewable energy to provide a vital safety energies.
mechanism for controlling frequency dips in national power grids. Our vision for a global His innovations include prize-winning
energy grid could revolutionise the way we use renewables.” technologies to improve efficiency and
The comprehensive analysis involved data capture for both renewable energy supply and eliminate commutation failure in long
global electricity demand. distance HVDC power transmission, and
Renewable energy supply was calculated using historical meteorological (weather) ways of stabilizing local grids that receive
data showing the potential for wind and solar power generation over a seven-year period renewable energy.
(2011-2017), and estimates of hydro-electric power generation from the International Professor Xiao-Ping Zhang has
Energy Association. a portfolio of patents on related
The researchers then calculated transmission costs over land and sea, potential power technologies, which are available to view
losses during transmission, and the operational and management costs of an HVDC-based on the IN-PART website.
global grid.
A more regional perspective, provided in a previous paper, shows that adopting this Contact Ruth Ashton, University of
approach would result in the regional cost of electricity dropping by 31%, 10% and 10% for Birmingham Enterprise,
Europe, North-East Asia and North America respectively. r.c.ashton@bham.ac.uk

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