ABB has successfully commissioned the refurbished Songo High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) converter station in Mozambique, Africa. The station is a key component in the 1920 MW HVDC link transmitting electricity from the Cahora Bassa hydropower plant in Mozambique across a distance of 1,417 kilometers to the South African grid. The HVDC link serves the power utilities Hidroeléctrica De Cahora Bassa (HCB) in Mozambique and Eskom in South Africa.
The hydropower plant is located on the Zambezi River in northern Mozambique, a country with a wealth of natural resources and a growing economy. Mozambique has great potential as an energy exporter with around 12 gigawatts (GW) of hydro capacity that could be developed and the Cahora Bassa plant is already one of the largest generation facilities in the South African power pool.
South Africa, where coal-based thermal power is the main source of electricity, has a significant demand-supply gap, so the approximately 2 gigawatts of power supplied from their neighbor to the northeast is critical. For Mozambique, the energy exports represent an important source of income.
“We are pleased that our innovative HVDC solution will bring clean renewable energy from Mozambique to the people of South Africa in a reliable and efficient manner” said Patrick Fragman, head of ABB’s Grid Systems business, a part of the company’s Power Systems division. “This refurbishment boosts power availability and strengthens the transmission infrastructure in the region.”
