Another step towards powering the ITER facility

Colleagues from US ITER, ITER Korea, and the ITER Organization gathered in Ulsan, South Korea on 25-27 September at the premises of Hyundai Heavy Industries to participate in the Manufacturing Readiness Review for the ITER steady state electrical network (SSEN) high voltage substation transformers.

 

This successful review is a crucial step towards powering the ITER facility.

 

The four transformer units, each rated 400/23.1kV, 75MVA, serve to connect the ITER site's 400kV Prionnet substation, operated by the French operator RTE, to the ITER SSEN AC distribution system. The SSEN, together with the PPEN (pulsed power electrical network), provides all electrical power to the ITER facility.

 

The SSEN provides power to all of the conventional "steady" loads of ITER, including the cooling water systems, the cryoplant, and all other loads demanded by the site infrastructure up to and including the HVAC and lighting of the buildings. The PPEN provides power to the "pulsed" systems of ITER, including the magnet power supplies and plasma heating systems. Considering the critical role of SSEN, the quality and reliability of the transformer units is key to the high availability of ITER operations.

 

The four units will be delivered one at a time, with the first arriving at ITER in the fall of 2014 and the last in early spring of 2015. The relatively early delivery needs of the SSEN 400kV substation components, including the transformers, is based on the need for power delivery from the SSEN substation beginning in the fall of 2015 to provide for the gradually increasing level of power required at the site during the ITER system commissioning phase.

 

Following the review resolution process, Hyundai Heavy Industries will submit a revised documentation package that will reviewed and approved by US ITER and the ITER Organization; then, a Manufacturing Release will be issued and fabrication will begin.

 

Hyundai Heavy Industries is among the leading power transformer manufacturers in the world, with an annual production capacity of 120,000 MVA, and unit ratings up to 765kV and 1500MVA. The transformer manufacturing facility is part of the massive Hyundai industrial complex located adjacent to Ulsan harbour.

 

The ITER Organization was represented by Joel Hourtoule, head of the Electric Power Distribution Section, and Supriya Nair, the Technical Responsible Officer. Following the tradition of good cooperation within the ITER Electrical Engineering Division, Jong-Seok Oh, the ITER Korea power supply technology team leader, attended the review to facilitate communication between review participants and to gain experience relevant to transformer procurements for the ITER AC/DC converter system. Additional participants from US ITER included Ajoy Das, the lead engineer from the URS Corporation (under contract to PPPL) serving as the SSEN Engineering Support Subcontractor, and Paul Russman, a seasoned power transformer consultant who has served clients at over 25 design reviews at the Hyundai Heavy Industries Ulsan factory.