Hitachi Energy will provide High-Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) equipment for the Gansu-Zhejiang ±800 kV Ultra High Voltage Direct Current (UHVDC) Transmission project, designed and built by the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC).
The project will facilitate the development and transmission of energy from renewable energy bases in China’s Gobi Desert and other arid regions, while meeting the increased power demand driven by economic development in the Yangtze River Delta region.
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), China is forecasted to be home to half of all renewable energy capacity installed worldwide by 2030. UHVDC transmission projects are crucial power infrastructures to improve China’s energy structure and large-scale power transmission. In 2023, the share of renewable energy transmitted through national UHVDC lines had surpassed 55 percent.
The transmission project starts from northwest China’s Gansu province and extends to southeast China’s Zhejiang province, spanning approximately 2,370 km. Once operational in 2026, the project will deliver approximately 36 billion kWh of electricity annually to Zhejiang, which regularly faces power shortages.
This is equivalent to the annual power consumption of around 33.7 million people in China. With more than 50 percent of the power sourced from renewable energy, the project will optimize Zhejiang’s energy mix.
The construction of the UHVDC project will improve the utilization of renewable energy in Gansu Province, which is home to vast deserts, including the Gobi Desert, and barren lands rich in wind and solar resources, making solar and wind energy the dominant power sources in the province.
The UHVDC project adopts VSC-HVDC technology at both ends and the link aims to increase the proportion of renewables integrated while improving transmission flexibility and control. It is expected to enable the consumption of over 21.2 billion kWh of renewable energy electricity generated in Gansu upon completion.
Hitachi Energy will provide technologies for the flexible transmission project, including converter transformers, power semiconductors, and Dry DC-link capacitors manufactured in China, Switzerland, and Sweden. The technologies will strengthen transmission capacity while ensuring the reliable, efficient, and smooth transmission and distribution of electricity over long-distance links.
