Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) has officially inaugurated a 400/132-kilovolt (kV) substation at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park.

The Dh275-million ($75 million ) substation has a conversion capacity of 1,515 megavolt amperes (MVA), said Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, the managing director and chief executive of Dewa, at the launch ceremony held in the presence of senior officials from Swiss firm ABB, the main contractor of the project, and Dewa.

One of the first projects of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the substation will transmit and transform electricity produced from solar energy and connect it to Dewa’s grid.

The substation is also the first of its kind in the UAE to integrate clean energy with the traditional energy grid, he stated.

Al Tayer, accompanied by ABB officials, toured the site of the project, which consists of four sections. The first includes a 400-kV substation with 11 gas-insulated switchgear (GIS).

The second section converts from 400 kV to 132 kV with a conversion capacity of 1,515 MVA. It includes three 400/132 kV interconnecting transformers. The third section has 21 GIS, while the fourth section houses the control and safety facilities.

ABB cooperated with a number of companies, including Energo and Comodor, to complete the project.

Frank Duggan, the president of Asia, Middle East and Africa (AMEA) at ABB, said the company was pleased to support Dubai’s clean energy vision by being a technology partner to Dewa at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park.

"As a leader in the energy revolution, ABB is perfectly positioned to support growth of renewables in the UAE energy mix and strengthen its power infrastructure," remarked Duggan.

According to him, it will be the first 400 kV station in the UAE connected to integrate solar energy, facilitating reliable and efficient transmission of clean power.

"We look forward to continuing to support Dewa, which has earmarked sustainability as a key focus area to complement federal development plans for a green UAE economy," he added.

Dewa said the project was completed within a record time of 26 months taken for construction of power stations with a capacity of 400 kV. Also, no injuries or accidents were reported during the construction of the substation, which accumulated a total of 2.6 million man-hours.

"This reflects Dewa’s commitment to implement projects with efficiency, following up with operations, and monitoring the progress of all projects," noted Al Tayer.

Dewa is now working on increasing the transmission capacity of the substation, and its efficiency, through three 400 kV GIS bays, one 400/132 kV transformer (ICT) with a capacity of 505 MVA, nine 132 kV GIS bays, and four 132 kV shunt reactors, he added.-TradeArabia News Service