Static VAR compensation in a Southern African grid

The interconnection of neighboring utilities in the Southern African grid is becoming more strategic, but will be faced with the problems of system stability associated with remote generation and weak interconnections. A case study is presented where an SVC (static VAr compensator) was installed to optimize the interconnection between ESKOM and SWAWEK, the Namibian electricity supply utility. The SVC fulfills a dual function by increasing the power transfer from the hydrogeneration plant into the ESKOM grid as well as maintaining stability under certain contingencies.An improvement in both the quality of supply (black-outs) and voltage supply (overvoltages and undervoltages) has been achieved.