ABB has received an order worth approximately €270m to deliver high-voltage direct current (HVDC) technology to help interconnect electricity networks of France and the UK.

The technology firm has received the order from French network owner and operator Réseau de Transport d'Electricité (RTE) and UK grid operator National Grid.

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With a capacity of 1,000MW, the link will connect Chilling in Hampshire on the southern coast of England to Tourbe in northern France, covering a total distance of 240km across the English Channel.

ABB's power grids division president Claudio Facchin said: “This order further strengthens our leading HVDC position and provides momentum to our transformational drive for profitable growth, as a partner of choice for enabling a stronger, smarter, and greener grid.”

"This order further strengthens our leading HVDC position and provides momentum to our transformational drive for profitable growth."

Under the deal, ABB will deliver the HVDC Light converter stations for installation. To be linked with a subsea cable, each station will help convert alternating current (AC) into direct current (DC) for transmission before re-converting DC back to AC prior to distribution, facilitating efficient and reliable movement of large amounts of electricity over long distances with minimum loss.

The HVDC Light technology also offers advanced features such as regulating grid fluctuations and power restoration in the event of an outage, which not only provides economic benefits for the network operator but also ensures reliable energy supply to the end users.

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Equipped with the company’s latest MACH control and protection system, the converter stations will support ABB's ability-based digital offering. The system will be used to monitor, control, and protect the technology, as well as manage a wide range of operations to ensure the reliability of electricity supplies.

In addition, the MACH system will feature advanced fault registration and remote control functions to help protect the HVDC link from unexpected disruptions, such as lightning strikes.

Image: HVDC technology enables efficient and reliable transmission of large amounts of power over long distances, with minimum losses. Photo: courtesy of Business Wire / ABB.