India's POWERGRID inks deal to build $640m transmission link

The link will sprawl across 1,800km.

ABB has teamed up with India’s national electricity grid operator Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (POWERGRID) in a mega project worth over $640 million for ABB to deliver a transmission link that will have the capacity to bring reliable electricity to more than 80 million people.

The Raigarh-Pugalur 800 kilovolt (kV) ultra-high-voltage direct current (UHVDC) system will connect Raigarh in Central India to Pugalur in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.

The 1,830 kilometer (km) link will be among the longest in the world. With a capacity of 6,000 megawatts – the equivalent of more than six large power plants – it will be enough to meet the electricity needs of over 80 million people in India.

The two-way link will integrate thermal and wind energy for transmission of power to high consumption centers located thousands of kilometers away, supporting electricity demands in the south, when wind strength is low, and transmitting clean energy to the north, when there is excess wind power.

The mega project is expected to be completed in 2019.