Murraylink is an Australian
high voltage direct current
A high-voltage direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system (also called a power superhighway or an electrical superhighway) uses direct current (DC) for electric power transmission, in contrast with the more common alternating curre ...
electricity transmission
Electric power transmission is the bulk movement of electrical energy from a generating site, such as a power plant, to an electrical substation. The interconnected lines that facilitate this movement form a ''transmission network''. This is d ...
link between
Berri in
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
and
Red Cliffs in
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
, connecting the two state
electricity grid
An electrical grid is an interconnected network for electricity delivery from producers to consumers. Electrical grids vary in size and can cover whole countries or continents. It consists of:Kaplan, S. M. (2009). Smart Grid. Electrical Power ...
s. Murraylink was commissioned in 2002 and is believed to be the world's longest underground transmission system and cost more than
A$177 million. It was built by
TransEnergie Australia, a subsidiary of
Hydro-Québec. It was sold to the
Australian Pipeline Trust (APA Group) in March 2006 for A$153 million. In December 2008 ownership of Murraylink (as well as
Directlink
Directlink (Terranora) Interconnector is a buried 59 kilometre (37 mi) High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) electricity transmission cable route from near Lavertys Gap (), Southwest of Mullumbimby, New South Wales and Bungalora () & connected via ...
) was transferred to the newly formed Energy Infrastructure Investments Group, while APA continued as the operator. The ownership of EII is APA with 19.9%, with the balance with Japan-based
Marubeni Corporation with 49.9% and
Osaka Gas with 30.2%.
Capacity
Murraylink consists of two long bipolar HVDC cables. The circuit has an operating voltage of 150
kV and a transmission capacity of 220
megawatt
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James ...
s. The link operates an "HVDC Light"
voltage-source converter system, utilising
insulated-gate bipolar transistor
An insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) is a three-terminal power semiconductor device primarily used as an electronic switch, which, as it was developed, came to combine high efficiency and fast switching. It consists of four alternating lay ...
s (IGBT), to convert electricity between alternating current and direct current.
While Murraylink is rated at 220MW, it is unable to operate at capacity during periods of high demand due to limitations in the transmission infrastructure at either end. The limitations relate to thermal overload of transformers or transmission lines supplying the
Riverland
The Riverland is a region of South Australia. It covers an area of along the River Murray from where it flows into South Australia from New South Wales and Victoria downstream to Blanchetown. The major town centres are Renmark, Berri, Loxt ...
(for South Australia to Victoria transmission) and western Victoria (for Victoria to South Australia transmission).
Sites
References
External links
HVDC transmission lines
Electric power transmission systems in Australia
Hydro-Québec
Electric power infrastructure in South Australia
Electric power infrastructure in Victoria (Australia)
2002 establishments in Australia
Energy infrastructure completed in 2002
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