Hitachi secures HVDC supply agreement for US interconnections
Hitachi secures HVDC supply agreement for US interconnections | Windpower Monthly
Under a capacity reservation agreement, Hitachi Energy will provide high-voltage direct current (HVDC) technology to support the development of multiple interconnections in the US planned by independent electrical transmission company Grid United.
The projects will interconnect eastern and western regional power grids, enabling greater integration of wind energy and helping mitigate the impact of extreme events.
“By working with companies like Hitachi Energy and partnering with incumbent utilities, we’re confident we can quicken the pace of modernising and strengthening the US electric grid to meet rapidly increasing electricity demand,” said Michael Skelly, CEO and co-founder of Grid United.
The multi-contract framework allows Hitachi Energy to plan for increased manufacturing capacity and maximise standardisation to increase efficiency across projects.
The US announcement follows a similar approach taken with large utilities in Europe and is a key innovation in securing the supply chain for the energy transition, Hitachi said.
Meanwhile, Andreas Schierenbeck has been appointed as Hitachi Energy’s new CEO, replacing Claudio Facchin from 1 July 2024.
Schierenbeck joins Hitachi Energy from HH2E, a green hydrogen production company.
Related Knowledge Center: Offshore wind energy
Over the next decade, U.S. offshore wind power is expected to grow from a single 30-megawatt wind farm off Rhode Island to more than 2,000 MW of capacity along the Atlantic Seaboard. There are contracts for wind power off the coasts of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Virginia.
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has estimated the United States has over 4,000 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind potential, enough to power the country four times over.
The growth in part being spurred by state solicitations, including in New York, where then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) set a commitment of 9,000 MW of offshore wind by 2035, and in Connecticut, where in June 2021, Gov. Ned Lamont (D) signed legislation authorizing the construction of 2,000 MW of offshore wind by 2030.
The offshore development is also being driven by an investment tax credit set to end in December 2019 and is equal to 12 percent of expenditures. U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Tom Carper (D-Del.) have introduced a bill to extend the tax credit for up to eight years.
The Interior Department has held eight competitive lease sales that resulted in 15 offshore wind leases over 1.7 million acres that has the potential for 21 GW of capacity. In February 2022, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management completed a bidding process that realized $4.37 billion for 488,000 acres across six lease areas in federal waters off New York and New Jersey.
Projects have also been proposed off the Southeast coast, off California and Hawaii, and for the Great Lakes.