IEC 61850 compliant substation automation systems deployed in Bahrain

The Bahraini Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) takes care of the country’s power system and ensures that it meets the growing demands for a high quality energy supply. EWA continuously invested in the expansion and stabilization of its transmission and distribution grid.

EWA entrusted Hitachi Energy with the realization of three new 220kV substations within a turnkey project:

• Maximum operational safety and environmental friendliness of compact GIS with state-of-the-art substation automation, control and protection
• Optimal life cycle management and low life cycle cost through future-proof SA systems based on key features of IEC 61850
• High reliability and security of the communication network to the National Control Centre (NCC) for telecontrol and of the equipment for teleprotection*
  
  * Telecommunications system supplied via main contractor Japan AE Power Systems Corp.

Our solution

On the primary side, Hitachi Energy supplied the compact GIS type ELK-14, which saves space and offers immunity to harsh environmental conditions. Owing to its reduced footprint, GIS is highly suitable for dense urban areas and meets the most exacting aesthetic demands. Its inherent operational safety and maintenance efficiency is further enhanced by the SAS 690 advanced Substation Automation System.

The proven functionality including interlocking and automatic sequences provides high-quality operator support for control and monitoring of the entire stations. The systems are based on the verified implementation of IEC 61850 to ensure their openness for functional and hardware extensions at any time. The use of the scalable REC670 bay control unit on all three voltage levels simplifies local control and maintenance. A fully redundant station level ensures high availability. System integration of third party protection IEDs is efficiently handled via a COM581 gateway for protocol conversion between IEC-103 and IEC 61850.

The existing communication network, with STM 1 rings formed using the integrated SDH/PDH platform of Hitachi Energy FOX 515, provides redundant communication channels to the NCC and shall be extended to seamlessly integrate the three new stations. The same applies to the teleprotection, where the state-of-the-art NSD 570 will again be used and can be configured for both optical and electrical communication media.

Customer benefits

• High system availability through redundant station servers/HMI, NCC gateways as well as Ethernet switches
• Optimal operational and maintenance efficiency with scalable bay control unit REC670 for all voltage levels
• Verified IEC 61850 implementation in all bay control and protection units from Hitachi Energy, i.e. REx670 family as well as REB500 busbar and breaker failure protection
• Easy access to all 3rd party protection IEDs via industrial IEC-103/IEC 61850 converter
• Simplified on-line monitoring as well as mainten- ance access to each bay via decentralized Ethernet switches
  
  Gas Insulated Switchgear
• Safe and reliable operation of high-quality equipment, independent of atmospheric influences
• Compact and space saving design
• Highly suitable for dense urban areas and exacting aesthetic requirements
• Lower operation and maintenance cost
  
  Communication System
• High security and reliability
• Efficient operation and maintenance of one common platform for SDH & PDH network and use of existing NMS of FOX515 for reconfiguration/ remote download
• Simple future extension of the network
• Seamless communication of the complete secondary systems from Hitachi Energy in the prestigious substations to the NCC with flexibility for various applications

Customer feedback

These are the first 220 kV GIS substations that Hitachi Energy has built for EWA. The latest technologies implemented in these projects go a long way in helping EWA to reinforce its grid and support it in achieving reliability and efficiency improvements in daily operation.

Hitachi Energy’s state-of-the-art portfolio as well as the long experience in the substation domain has convinced EWA fully.