Renewable applications

Wind plant design review

Building on its foundation of GE power systems expertise, Energy Consulting offers a suite of system studies and services to help wind plant developers and utilities reduce + minimize the risks associated with connection of a new wind plant to the grid. For example, Energy Consulting can assess whether a wind plant’s design and controls coordinate with Grid Code and Interconnection requirements.

Wind plants require special interconnection considerations to properly coordinate wind turbine and wind plant active and reactive power controls. We understand and model the transient, dynamic and short circuit behavior of wind generation and coordinating plant protection. We have extensive wind plant study experience that has specifically addressed these special considerations, and are skilled in the use of advanced tools, including GE’s proprietary WINDTRAP software.

Owner benefits

Our services have provided numerous benefits to wind plant owners, including:

• Verify plant design capabilities can meet interconnection codes.
• Identify potential concerns and make recommendations early in the requisition phase.
• Provide report documentation that satisfies grid operator requirements for interconnection.
• Provide coordinated protection and control settings for the plant.
• Tuning, testing and model verification of in-service plants.

Design review study

Energy Consulting provides multi-layered analyses focusing on equipment configuration and ratings, and the ability to meet grid requirements at the point of interconnection.

Design review topics include:

• Steady state/quasi-steady state performance
• Dynamic performance/disturbance ride-through
• Harmonic analysis
• Insulation coordination
• Short circuit
• Relay protection coordination

Multi-plant voltage regulator coordination

As wind plant penetration grows, the plants grow more interconnected with other voltage-regulating plants. Uncoordinated regulators can “fight” or circulate reactive power between plants. This interaction can exhaust the dynamic reactive headroom and can cause large system disturbances.

Energy Consulting offers analysis of plant voltage regulators to coordinate plant controls and tune voltage regulator droop and dynamic gains to avoid fighting and maintain stability. We can both determine the recomended setting and perform field tests to verify performance.

Plant modeling

Most utilities require positive sequence fundamental frequency dynamic models to coordinate power generation interconnection. Energy Consulting builds and maintains a suite of wind and solar models for plants using GE technology in its software packages (PSLF, PSS/e, Power Factory, Anatem, etc.). Together with GE Renewables, Energy Consulting distributes these models to developers and plant owners to help them meet interconnection requirements.

Additionally, to meet many existing and emerging requirements for model validation (such as WECC and NERC requirements), GE Energy Consulting offers field testing and model verification service to developers and generation owners. For more information on this service, explore our grid code testing offering.