Factors Influencing Design of Dynamic Reactive Power Compensation for an Offshore Wind Farm

Journal article, 2009

This paper investigates factors that influence the design of dynamic reactive power compensation (DRPC) for an offshore wind farm consisting of fixed-speed wind turbines. Several influencing factors are considered including DRPC device types and locations, network strength, and fault ride-through (FRT) capability of individual wind turbines in the wind farm. The DRPC alternatives discussed in this paper comprise of a STATCOM and an SVC. It is found that the exclusion of wind turbine FRT capability results in too large DRPC size estimation. In the case of wind turbines equipped with FRT capability, it was found that the investment cost for both STATCOM and SVC options are comparable. The study also emphasizes the necessity of performing dynamic analysis to correctly design the size and location of the DRPC device.