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You can’t control the wind, but you can control the rest!
Wind Power
www.schneider-electric.com
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• Design the most efficient wind farm possible p. 4
• Ensure maximum uptime and performance throughout your wind farm’s lifetime p. 8
• Make sure all your assets are profitable p. 11
• Ensure smooth smart grid integration p. 13
Concrete answers to your wind farm questions
Obtaining the highest possible energy yields throughout a wind farm’s lifetime
is a concern shared by stakeholders across the value chain – from wind farm
developers, investors, and operators through to wind turbine manufacturers.
To get the most out of a wind farm, all equipment must be kept at optimal
operating condition at all times.
The wind power market is growing; increasing demand for capacity
can guarantee a return on investment that exceeds that of any bank account.
However, to obtain optimal wind farm performance over the long term, the site
must be carefully chosen and the installation well-designed. This means
selecting the right orientation, architecture, equipment, and services.
There is much more to a wind farm than the wind turbines. Although the turbines
form the most visible part of a wind farm, they alone cannot ensure the financial
success of a wind power venture. Getting the energy produced to the grid
is crucial; the capacity to provide the grid with energy is what gives
a wind farm its value.
Wind farms operate under contract with electric utilities. Of course, the contract
guarantees a wind farm’s sales. But in exchange, a wind farm must fulfil
requirements concerning power quality, availability, and flexibility. To further
complicate matters, these requirements fluctuate throughout the day.
When operated efficiently, a wind farm can contribute to overall grid performance
and be financially profitable.
Wind energy, a sustainable investment
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Schneider Electric can help you take your wind power project from idea to profitable businessGlobal energy management specialist Schneider Electric can support you
at every stage of the wind farm lifecycle:
• determining a design strategy based on the site’s weather history,
regulatory requirements, network access and other crucial factors
• assisting wind turbine manufacturers and installers with equipment design
• operations and maintenance monitoring and surveillance
• energy storage solutions.
Our solutions bring you the flexibility of Schneider Electric systems backed by
the renowned quality of our equipment and the knowledge and experience of
our people. Our products and services have been implemented at large wind farms
and have been scaled to achieve the best technical and cost performance.
For wind turbine manufacturers• The quality and performance of Schneider Electric equipment• Design and implementation assistance• Guaranteed compatibility with other manufacturers’ equipment
For wind farm developers• Support at every stage in the project from the very beginning with particular attention to strategic issues• Efficient budget management and fast turnaround times to get your wind farm up and running fast
For investors• The guarantee of a major multinational corporation you can count on to be there for the long term with solutions proven to get you the ROI you seek • Future-proof solutions• Energy management experts to address your questions
For operators• High uptime• Fast response in the event of a system or equipment malfunction• Real-time equipment status and production monitoring• Smart grid integration
A comprehensive solution from the collector substation to multi-site, multi-energy supervision systems• Standard products and technologies• Tested, validated, documented solutions• Compliance with regulations and standards• Solutions available for turbines whatever the manufacturer
Long-term operations and maintenance support• Broad, deep knowledge of energy grids and energy management systems (collector substations, energy compensation, supervision systems, remote monitoring, etc.) to ensure proper operation over the long term• The capacity of a large multinational manufacturing company to deliver on long-term maintenance and spare parts contracts and the confidence of experts who will be there for you tomorrow and beyond• Local partners trained on your equipment for a rapid response to your needs
Maximum annual uptime guaranteed
A trusted partner with expert knowledge of your businessAt Schneider
Electric we know that:
> you can’t afford to lose a day’s production because a wind turbine is out of service
> you can’t wait hours to receive that spare part you need
> you can’t achieve the highest yields out of your plant without powerful supervision tools
The Schneider Electric promise Benefits for all
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Design the most efficient wind farm possible
By addressing all factors likely to impact outputfrom turbine to grid.
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Your wind farm design decisions
will depend on factors like
weather, equipment performance,
regulations and standards,
and grid integration.
Schneider Electric brings proven,
cost-competitive solutions
backed by extensive wind farm
experience to help you engineer
the most profitable wind farm
possible.
Insights to confirm your chosen site
• We deliver unrivalled knowledge of weather maps to round out your site survey and confirm that your site is the best choice for your project. Depending on the geographical location of your chosen site, we may even be able to give you detailed ten-year wind speed records.
• We can also carry out lightning studies to help you determine exactly what equipment is best-suited to your site. Wind turbines are lightning rods! It is also important to factor in the location of your site and its keraunic level from the early design stages. This will ensure that the equipment inside the wind turbine is capable of withstanding direct and indirect effects of lightning strikes, such as overvoltages coming off the grid, overvoltages in the loops due to the magnetic field induced by lightning, the flow of current generated by the electrical field, and capacitive coupling.
From wind turbine to grid
It is natural for wind farm developers and investors to want some sort of guarantee that the wind turbines will operate as intended. This is where manufacturer performance contracts come in, which set out the minimum annual uptime that must be delivered. However, these contracts often neglect an additional – and no less important – impact of energy production, namely how the energy generated by the wind turbine actually gets to the grid. We offer equipment and services designed to guarantee your wind farm’s performance:
• Our turnkey electrical pack, which includes: - MV switchgear to conduct power to the grid- a producer PLC to manage the grid hookup- a turbine-to-turbine network (underground, 20 kV cable, fiber optic, telecommunications, etc.)- cables connecting the wind farm to the grid- a supervision system to control energy levels sent to the grid.
• An electrical distribution service contract to ensure that energy reaches the grid.
By addressing all factors likely to impact outputfrom turbine to grid.
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Production forecasts
Wind farm supervision and data logs, when used with our personalized weather forecasting service, enable optimal production forecasts for more profitable energy sales.
Standardized, industrially-manufactured solutions
Our wind farm solutions cover the entire electrical installation. In addition to the turnkey electrical pack described above, we can also provide value-added equipment for wind turbine manufacturers and wind farm engineers. These include 20 kV collector substations, energy compensation systems, and high-voltage collector substations for very large farms (from 63 kV to 400 kV).
Finally, we offer a fully-equipped, ready-to-hook-up collector substation solution suitable for wind farms with between five and eight turbines. This turnkey substation offers a number of advantages:
• A universal design (based on nineteen standards) suitable for use with equipment from all manufacturers. And purchasing the substation couldn’t be simpler. You just need to know: - your wind turbine make, as dimensions, connectors, and communication protocols can vary from one manufacturer to another - the number of incoming and outgoing connections to the grid - whether or not you need an active or passive filter.
Our unparalleled automation program can manage the nineteen standards. The result is an industrially-manufactured, tested, documented solution offering excellent technical performance and ROI.
• The prefabricated substation is ready to set up. And, because you can design your substation even before your wind farm’s detailed specifications have been completed, you save time and get your wind farm up and running faster, shortening time to ROI.
A flexible, standardized solution
safe
reliable
quick to implement
competitively priced
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Regulatory compliance
Depending on the country, wind turbines must meet certain safety requirements, which can include:• lightning protection • earthquake protection; Schneider Electric collector substations align with the highest Eurocodes• smoke/fire detection and intrusion detection; each room of our collector substations is fully equipped• training of all staff working on the wind turbines; Schneider Electric Energy Training covers not only the required certifications and authorizations, but can also help your staff get to know the equipment at your wind farm and give them the skills needed to do their jobs safely• risk-free operations; when a presence detector in a MV substation is triggered, all systems likely to present a danger to people are automatically shut down.
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Ensure maximum uptime and performance throughout your wind farm’s lifetime
By thinking about long-term returns when making operations and maintenance decisions.
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Your business depends entirely on something nobody can control:
the wind! Fortunately, you can control all the other parameters of
your wind farm – and make sure your equipment delivers on
its manufacturer’s promise of performance throughout its lifetime.
Schneider Electric offers a comprehensive lineup of supervision solutions, from basic systems designed for a single wind farm to multi-site, multi-energy systems for operators managing wind, PV, biomass, and other types of plants, anywhere in the world.
The supervision system ensures your equipment is operating as intended and logs data
As an energy producer, you are under contract to provide the grid with a certain amount of electricity. To run your business, you need to know if you are meeting your production commitments to the utility. You also need to know if your equipment is operating as efficiently as it should. Finally, you need to be able to find the right solution fast in the event of a malfunction. Not only today, but throughout your wind farm’s lifetime.
We have built monitoring devices right into our electrical distribution architectures. We look at strategic points across your wind farm, gathering energy production and equipment status data that is processed in real time by our supervision systems to generate reports and indicators you can view via an online platform:• accurate, real-time equipment yields and farm profitability• detailed equipment status information; in the event of a malfunction, the location and cause of the problem are identified and a technician can respond rapidly with the right spare parts ensuring maximum uptime and minimizing lost production• remote management capacities accessible from any computer connected to the internet allowing the operator to control equipment remotely and take corrective measures like resetting the collector substation; all equipment diagrams are on the server and all equipment status information can be viewed from a tablet or smartphone.
Our remote management solutions are cybersecure and compliant with IEC standards 61400-12 and 61400-25, and are compatible for use with all types of turbines as well as with turbine SCADA systems when so equipped.
You can also round out your system with additional modules for value-added features such as:• asset management, with maintenance planning, smart alarm management, real-time operations monitoring, and data management, analysis, and optimization• our proven weather forecasting service.
Object library to facilitate upgrades
Standard wind farm and status management from a single supervision system connected to various types of production equipment, from wind and solar to hydro
Fully-integrated reactive power management via grid codes using hybrid energy compensation techniques
All information can be accessed in three clicks or less for a fast learning curve and maximum ease of use
Integrated cybersecurity measures
Benefits
By thinking about long-term returns when making operations and maintenance decisions.
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Maintenance services to achieve the level of performance you need
Schneider Electric Advantage Service Plans were developed to keep your equipment running as intended throughout its lifetime.
Advantage Service Plans offer:• regularly scheduled maintenance by qualified technicians• guaranteed response and spare parts delivery times.
Because Schneider Electric technicians know your wind farm equipment inside and out, are familiar with grid operations, and know your maintenance history, you can rest assured that your equipment will be back up and running quickly if a problem does occur. A minimum annual uptime is guaranteed by contract.
Video surveillance, ideal for isolated wind farms
You have made substantial investments in your wind farm. Therefore, it is only natural to want to keep an eye on your equipment, especially if the site is unmanned and/or isolated.
Our video surveillance solutions include security cameras that communicate with the control center so you can:• respond rapidly in the event of an intrusion• make sure the site is accessible (snow, ice, construction work, etc.)• know if maintenance technicians expected on site are there or not• perform visual checks of the equipment• follow up on an incident picked up by the supervision system.
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Make sure all your assets are profitable
By integrating accurate weather forecasts, energy production is easier to predict and manage.
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Planning ahead for the weather
Predicting wind speeds – both immediate and medium-term – can help you run your wind farm more profitably. The Weather Sentry Online weather forecasting service, which is bundled with Schneider Electric’s supervision system, offers smart weather data display and management features. The service can be configured to meet each user’s unique needs, and the interface is simple and user-friendly. You get by-the-hour weather data with a 72-hour time horizon and day-by-day weather data for a two-week period for any location around the globe. You can also add features like webcam feeds, and export wind logs, forecasts, and other data in Excel format.
Weather Sentry Online can be configured for numerous points on a map, so that investors with several sites at different locations can monitor weather at all sites. And, because the application is global, you can work with operators around the world via a single interface.
When you adjust your wind farm’s operations according to the available wind, you can fine tune production, control supply to the grid, and make adjustments for more efficient facility management and more profitable energy production.
Grid audits during operation
Of course, grid audits are crucial to planning and engineering your wind farm. However, did you know that an audit also gives you valuable insights once your wind farm is up and running? Nuisance tripping has an impact on your wind farm’s productivity, and an audit can identify causes so you can implement the corrective measures needed to get your equipment back up to full capacity.
3 m/s The minimum amount of wind required to operate a wind turbine
Weather data can help you:• know how much you can commit to, in terms of production capacity, volumes, and lead times
• plan maintenance more effectively (avoiding work on site during storms, for example).
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Ensure smooth smart grid integration
By implementing energy storage solutions that contribute to a more stable grid.
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Renewable energy can disrupt
today’s traditional grids, and
blackouts are a constant threat.
Production is by nature variable,
fluctuating according to time
of day and weather. This can make
it difficult to balance supply
and demand, even when
renewables are combined
with traditional energy sources.
Schneider Electric is a key stakeholder in building tomorrow’s smart grids. Our energy storage solutions were developed to facilitate the integration of renewables into the grid to:• overcome the problems associated with variable energy production • respond to peak demand and make wind energy available to the market at times when it is most profitable.
A modular product and service combination from power conversion to advanced monitoring and control.
Our high-power (500 kW and up) storage system was especially developed for energy producers and distributors. The system’s high-quality components are some of the best on the market, and the electricity conversion system is designed and manufactured by Schneider Electric. The system is built around a transformer connected to two converters with a PLC to manage power and energy storage and release. We work with industry leaders to design the batteries and the storage management subsystems. Our partners bring fifteen years of experience developing and commercializing lithium-ion energy storage systems.
Storage Master controller andscheduler (J-1 / H-1)
Storage management module
Grid support functions
Store box management RTU
2 inverters
2 inverters Transformer
Transformer
PCS container 1
PCS container 2
1 MW
1 MW
MV substation
Storage
Wind farm
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And our solutions do more than just store energy.
They respond to two major objectives: power and energy.
> Power:
• deliver all of the power available on the grid within seconds for typical periods of 15 minutes to 30 minutes• smooth out the variable effects of renewables.
> Energy:
• store all available energy according to a configurable command and deliver power on demand (to use one’s own energy production, to offset peaks in demand, and to manage voltage for instance)• make the most of production resources by storing energy when demand is low to optimize baseline production and better manage peak demand. Batteries are sized according to your energy and power objectives. To determine the best solution for your needs:- we analyze how the energy you produce is used- we look at ways to find the best compromise between power and energy- we scale the batteries and conversion system for your desired equipment lifetime.
A single SCADA is used to supervise wind farm energy storage and energy management.
Low energy use
Electricity sent to grid
Intermittence
Pow
er
Time
Wind production
Storage (charge)
Release (discharge)
High energy use
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Value-added solutions for your entire wind farm
The medium-voltage collector substation: standard design suitable for all needs
The collector substation is a crucial component of your wind farm – it is the substation that carries the energy produced by your wind turbines to the grid. The substation is also vital to ensuring the safety of your maintenance technicians and protecting your equipment from incidents like short circuits and lightning strikes. Substation design is a key factor in keeping your wind farm operating as intended and effectively getting the energy you produce to the grid. Our substations are:• compact and easy to transport to the wind farm site• delivered preassembled, configured, and tested • safe and practical for maintenance • sold with an optional measurement and control system • designed to withstand harsh environments with optimized UPS capabilities and reduced fault risks.
Conversion substation
Contains:• reduced-loss transformer (oil-immersed or cast resin)- natural or forced-air cooling system - protection and monitoring devices- compliant with IEC standards• a frequency converter• a PLC that communicates with the collector substation PLC to synchronize frequencies and manage the batteries (charge/discharge depending on demand from the grid).
Wind farm surveillance system
• Automated HD and thermal surveillance cameras• Remote surveillance system with transmission to the supervision desk and the duty technician’s smartphone; the system covers access control, intrusion detection, photographic imaging, and lighting, and any abnormal event triggers an alarm with optional surveillance video.
Conversion substation
• Container for lithium-ion batteries• Batteries• LV switchboard
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SM6
MV switchgear and protection relays
Producer PLCThe interface between the wind farm and its operator and between the equipment and the utility. It can generate SMS alerts and display a web-based monitoring interface on any smartphone.
Modicon M340
The collector substation houses the following equipment
CGset MCset
We can also provide HV systems for very large wind farms.
SupervisionThis standardized solution rolls in command, control, and supervision all in one.
It is connected to the weather forecasting service for rapid response to changing wind speeds, potential bad weather, and lightning hazards.
Flexible, it offers a user-friendly interface that can be personalized to each user’s profile and needs. It is easy to implement across multiple sites.
Benefits:
• Scalable to your site’s size and adaptable to your operations• Gathers, transmits and analyzes real-time data, generates trend curves, and manages logs• Remote troubleshooting and maintenance freeing up your maintenance technicians and ensuring your facility is up and running fast in the event of an incident• Asset management capabilities with equipment status monitoring, alerts, and maintenance planning and optimization • Billing management for energy sold to the utility • Automated management of communications with the utility
Condenser and active or passive filters
Varset
CP200 series
Accusine
Power transformer
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Strong partnerships with major wind turbine manufacturersSchneider Electric is a trusted partner to the world’s largest wind turbine
manufacturers, who turn to us for the equipment they need to keep
their wind turbines running as planned.
Trihal VegetaWind
HV/MV transformer
DVCAS RM6
Switchgear
Gutor
UPS
TeSys F
Contactor
Masterpact
Circuit breaker
Canalis/I-Line
Busbar trunking
Medium voltage and distribution
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Symmetra
UPS
Modicon M258 XBTGC
Modicon M340
PLC
Wind turbine monitoring and control plus backup power
Electrical distribution – motor starter and protection
Altivar 71
Variable speed drive
Altistart
Starter
Magelis
Human-machine interface
Harmony
Pushbuttons
Prisma
Electrical switchboard
TeSys U
Motor control
Sepam
Protection relay
Quick PRD
Lightning protection
Schneider Electric, leading the way to tomorrow’s smart grids
Schneider Electric is a partner of a number of innovation projects testing the integration of wind power into the grid. Venteea, spearheaded by ERDF, France’s main utility infrastructure company, is one such project. Located in northeastern France’s Aube district (home to the largest number of medium- and high-power wind turbines in France), this living lab is being used to test innovative equipment and management hardware and software as well as electricity storage solutions for rural medium-voltage grids integrating wind power.
Schneider Electric is contributing communications solutions to the Venteea project. Used with a supervision system, these solutions can track production and test storage battery charging and discharging. The equipment implemented includes two 2-MVA converters and a 2 MW/1.3 MWh lithium-ion battery system.
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Schneider Electric
35, rue Joseph MonierF-92505 Rueil-Malmaison CedexPhone: + 33 (0) 1 41 29 70 00Fax: + 33 (0) 1 41 29 71 00
www.schneider-electric.com
October, 2015NRJED115696EN
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