ABB wins $33 million order in India to strengthen power grid

ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, has won an order

worth around $33 million from NTPC Limited, India’s largest power company, to build two substations in the

western Indian state of Maharashtra. The substations will facilitate transmission of electricity from new power

generation plants being constructed in the region.

"These substations will provide the transmission and distribution infrastructure to increase capacity and meet

growing demand for electricity in the region,” said Brice Koch, Head of ABB’s Power Systems division. ”They

will also help to strengthen the grid and improve power reliability.”

Given its growth ambitions and per capita consumption India is expected to expand its power infrastructure

substantially in the coming years. The country has an installed power generation capacity of around 200,000

megawatts (MW) and according to estimates of the International Energy Agency, India needs to invest more than

$135 billion to add between 600 and 1,200 gigawatt (GW) of additional new power generation capacity by 2050 to

provide universal access to electricity for its population.

The substations will include seventeen 400 kilovolt (kV) bays and fourteen 132 kV bays in Solapur, and twelve

400kV bays and eight 132kV bays in Mauda. ABB’s turnkey project scope comprises the design, engineering,

supply, installation, commissioning and associated civil works for the substations. The substations will also

be equipped with the latest IEC 61850 substation automation system to facilitate open communication between the

numerous control and protection devices within the substation and beyond. The project is scheduled for

completion in 2016.

Substations are key installations in the power grid that transform voltage levels and facilitate the safe and

efficient transmission and distribution of electricity. They include equipment that protects and controls the

flow of electrical power. ABB is the world’s leading supplier of turnkey air-insulated, gas-insulated and

hybrid substations with voltage levels up to 1,100 kV.

ABB has recently been entrusted by NTPC for the construction of substations at Mauda (Stage-I), Gandhar and

Nabinagar.

NTPC is the largest power utility in India and has been playing a major role in meeting the power needs of the

country and in contributing to its economic and social development. With an installed capacity of 36,514 MW

through 15 coal based, 7 gas based and 6 Joint Venture power stations, NTPC contributed 28.6 percent of

electricity in the country, with about 19 percent of India's installed capacity.

ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers

to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around

100 countries and employs about 145,000 people.

https://www.abb.com/cawp/seitp202/bc6aa11d05d24adcc1257a0500275e5b.aspx