Construction Management team collaborates with industry providers to reduce harmonic filter requirement and increase lifetime value

In Australia, the market operator AEMO and the Network Service Provider (NSP) put specific processes in place to mitigate risk and meet Generator Performance Standards (GPS). One of these processes involves a harmonic assessment, which may require a “harmonic filter.” This is a piece of technology that acts to eliminate harmonic distortion in electrical voltage on the grid. ​

Harmonic filters are an expensive piece of equipment (up to several million dollars to source and more to maintain over the lifetime of a project) that can sometimes be reduced or negated with the right management from a skilled and experienced team. ​

On a 100MW+ solar farm managed by RES, a harmonic filter requirement was put forward by the EPC Contractor as part of the harmonic assessment to satisfy the requirements of the GPS. The RES grid team got to work, performing technical reviews, leveraging in-house harmonic expertise, and working with AEMO and the NSP. As a result, the size of the harmonic filter required was reduced. ​

This reduction saved the client more than $1m in capital expenditure and maintenance costs over the lifetime of the project; a demonstration that significant in-house technical expertise, combined with a proven history of trust and good faith with the industry operator, is yet another way that a RES asset management team adds significant value to your renewable asset.