Ansaldo Energia teams up with competitor ABB for electrical systems contract

The Temporary Grouping of Competitors formed by Ansaldo Energia and ABB has won an order from Terna, worth a total of over 70 million euros, following a European call for tender.

The scope of supply for Ansaldo Energia, which heads the Temporary Association of Companies, includes the design, supply, commissioning and maintenance of three synchronous condensers, each rated 250 MVAR, for installation in Central and Southern Italy, plus options for two synchronous condensers to be exercised no later than 36 months from the order date.

The installation of the three units covered by firm orders will be completed in 2022.

Synchronous condensers are special electric generator applications that, when connected to the Terna transmission grid, exchange reactive energy with it and increase the short-circuit power. They also contribute inertia to the power grid, increasing stability. This is particularly important in a grid with many generation plants that use renewable sources, which are intrinsically discontinuous and characterised by low or no inertia. The latest supplies are for synchronous condensers equipped with the “flywheel system”, designed and implemented using innovative solutions developed by Ansaldo Energia, which increases the overall inertia of the rotating system while minimising mechanical losses because it is contained inside a vacuum chamber.

For this tender, Ansaldo Energia chose as its partner ABB, a global leader in pioneering technologies used to implement more intelligent, robust and sustainable power grids. ABB will supply, install and commission the system that connects the synchronous compensators to the grid, including the protection and control systems and the monitoring and diagnostic solutions.

The contract also entails the provision of maintenance and assistance for both plants for twenty years.