Feb 13 2008
American Superconductor Corporation, a leading energy technologies company, announced today that it has received orders from two electric utilities for its proprietary D-VAR(R) (Dynamic VAR) reactive compensation solution. One of the utilities is Entergy Mississippi, Inc., part of Entergy Corporation, which provides electricity to 2.7 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. The second utility is located outside the U.S.
D-VAR systems are classified as Static Compensators, or "STATCOMs," a member of the FACTS (Flexible AC-Transmission System) family of power electronic solutions for alternating current (AC) power grids. D-VAR solutions detect and instantaneously compensate for voltage disturbances by dynamically injecting leading or lagging reactive power into the power grid. AMSC has now received orders for well over 60 STATCOM devices worldwide, more than all other manufacturers combined. The company's STATCOM customers include more than 20 electric utilities worldwide.
"Our broad experience with electric utilities around the world combined with our technologically advanced power grid technologies is yielding a rapid influx of new orders from this sector," stated Chuck Stankiewicz, executive vice president and general manager of AMSC's Power Systems business unit. "Our highly reliable D-VAR and Static VAR Compensator (SVC) systems are enabling electric utilities today to address complex stability and reliability issues on their transmission networks. In fact, AMSC has emerged as the world's leading provider of STATCOM devices - a position that continues to strengthen with the two orders we announced today."
The D-VAR system purchased by Entergy Mississippi, Inc. will be installed in a substation in Mississippi to help improve the reliability of the local power grid. Entergy first purchased an AMSC STATCOM solution in 2000 to bolster grid reliability in the Houston, Texas area and placed a second order in 2001.
A modular and scalable solution, D-VAR systems are customized to meet specific customer needs. These solutions are being utilized in a wide range of applications, including voltage regulation and grid reliability, optimization of power transfer capacity on stability-limited transmission networks, and reactive power support for wind farm interconnection to the grid.