South Korean Samsung C&T Corporation has awarded a contract to Hitachi Energy for a sub-sea power transmission network to connect Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s (ADNOC) offshore operations to Abu Dhabi National Energy Company’s (TAQA) onshore power grid in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), also known as the ADNOC–TAQA Lightning Project.
The entire power-from-shore project will comprise two HVDC power links of 3,200 MW capacity, which will connect two clusters of offshore oil and gas production facilities to the mainland power grid, a distance of up to 140 km for each cluster. The first cable cluster comprises three 400 kV subsea cables of 135 km each and will connect Das Island to Abu Dhabhi’s mainland. The second cluster entails four 320 kV submarine cables of 125 km each and will connect Al Ghallan island to the mainland. The scope of work for Hitachi Energy includes the study, design and engineering, supply, installation supervision and commissioning of four convertor stations, which will convert AC power to DC power for transmission in the subsea cables, then reconvert it to AC from DC for use in the offshore power systems. The project will enable the transfer of cleaner and more sustainable onshore power sources from Abu Dhabi, such as solar panels and local nuclear power. This will reduce the carbon footprint of ADNOC’s offshore facilities by more than 30 per cent.