Transmission control

ABB has signed a $20m contract with Operatori Sistemit Trasmetimit, Albania’s electricity network operator, for a system that will improve the reliability of the country’s electricity grid.

ABB

has signed a $20m (£12.4m) contract with the operator of Albania’s electricity transmission network for a system that will improve the reliability of the grid by monitoring and controlling high-voltage transmission.

ABB will deliver a Network Manager SCADA/EMS (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition/Energy Management System) that will make it easier to control the balance between generation and consumption. According to ABB, a system operator will be able to regulate the network from a single control room in the capital Tirana.

The project for Operatori Sistemit Trasmetimit will also align Albania’s network with European standards, thereby allowing the south eastern European nation to trade power with nearby countries.

ABB will also supply the communication system to collect and distribute data from more than 50 power plants and substations using about 400km of high-capacity optical fibre, including all necessary substation adaptations.

The project is scheduled to be completed within three years.