The best of both Combining STATCOM with

conventional thyristor based Static Var Compensator

technology
Volker Hild, Lutz Kirschner, Georg Pilz, Lothar Peuter (Siemens AG, Energy Sector, Germany),
Brian Gemmell (Siemens Energy, Inc.)

Abstract For the purpose of dynamic voltage applications the investment for a conventional SVC is
support static synchronous compensators potentially more economic especially when it
(STATCOM) or Static Var Compensators (SVC) are comes to operating ranges exceeding several hundred
available in the market. So far both technologies have MVAr.
been used separately depending on the respective Selection of technology for a compensation project is
electric requirements and project needs. In most cases driven by several factors such as but not limited to
the use of a STATCOMs superior undervoltage design points, required undervoltage performance,
performance was limited to projects where a (almost) existing network conditions, loss evaluation and
symmetrical operating range was required. This paper operating scheme. Most often the electric
describes a new solution, where both multilevel requirements and site conditions are complex and
STATCOM and conventional thyristor based SVC require a specific solution.
technology are combined into a Hybrid SVC with Combining both technologies, STATCOM and
unsymmetrical MVAr output to take advantage of conventional thyristor based SVC, was a logical and
both technologies capabilities. Topics of System consequential natural progression.
Design, Control and Protection and Operating The STATCOM with its symmetrical output is used
Principle are covered to provide an overview of the as the main converter which can then be extended by
solutions benefits and possible applications. thyristor switched capacitor branches and / or
thyristor controlled reactor branches combining the
electric advantages of the STATCOM with the
I. INTRODUCTION flexibility of unsymmetrical and large scale operating
ranges creating a new kind of compensation
For many years, STATCOM technology was used in solution: The Hybrid SVC.
special applications, often funded for R&D purposes.
Most of these applications covered only small MVAr II. SYSTEM DESIGN
ranges, with significant loss profile and represented a
huge source of harmonics due to the two- or three- A self-commutated Static Var Compensator also
level switching pattern. For approximately five years known as Static synchronous compensator
now, the multilevel STATCOM technology has been (STATCOM) is a regulating device controlling the
available in the market and has been proven to be alternating current.
state-of-the art with many installations of different
sizes and applications.
With a significantly better undervoltage performance,
a faster response time, significantly less equipment
and consequently smaller footprint and most
importantly no need for filtering harmonics, several
factors seem now to favor STATCOM technology
over conventional thyristor based Static Var
Compensators.
But even though both, STATCOM and conventional
thyristor based Static Var Compensators, serve Figure 1: Siemens solution of multilevel
similar or even same purposes such as voltage configuration of a STATCOM (SVC
regulation and dynamic voltage support, STATCOM PLUS)
has so far not widely substituted conventional SVCs
For years STATCOMs were based on two- and three-
for several reasons. Operating ranges of STATCOMs
level switching patterns, whereas the state-of-the-art
are by nature symmetrical, and for large rating
technology is nowadays the multilevel configuration.
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In Figure 1 the Siemens solution for a multilevel behavior results in an identical operating range as a
STATCOM is shown. The heart of the converter is conventional SVC based on thyristor technology.
the H-bridge installation of a DC capacitor with four However, the reactive power output differences
connected IGBT and anti-parallel freewheeling between STATCOM and conventional SVC become
diodes. The power electronic with associated control apparent during network contingencies, when the
electronic and auxiliary supply is assembled inside voltage on the connection point decreases. The task
the power module which forms together with the DC- for the installed SVC is to provide capacitive current
capacitor one powermodule unit. Each powermodule to support the network voltage. In this case the
can be connected in series with a dedicated number of reactive power output of a thyristor based SVC will
similar powermodules. The number of connected decrease with the square of the connected voltage.
powermodules depends on the required reactive Contrary to the SVC, the reactive power output of the
power output. The IGBT will be switched in a STATCOM decreases only linearly to the network
controlled manner to achieve +uDC, -uDC or 0V on the voltage. Due to this difference, the network voltages
powermodule terminals. The sum of all individual in the nodes with STATCOM technology will be
powermodule output voltages forms the terminal higher in case of a contingency compared to those
voltages uout (Figure 2) and drives the reactive current nodes using conventional thyristor based SVCs.
output. The size of the reactive power output is Simulations show also a faster voltage recovery for
controlled via the amplitude of the converter voltage STATCOM technologies after fault clearing for the
uout. The change of reactive current can be achieved whole network. All in all the STATCOM is superior
on each time instant of the sinusoidal current during such undervoltage events.
waveform (self-commutated). This capability The usage of a nearly sinusoidal voltage source for
provides a significant advantage over an SVC based generating the reactive current has also benefits in
on thyristor technology. The switching state of the terms of harmonic connection criteria to the grid.
thyristor can only be changed after zero crossing of Using a thyristor based SVC or a three-level
the current and produce an additional time delay in STATCOM the specified criteria can only be
the response time of the compensation, while an achieved by implementation of one additional or
immediate voltage change of the STATCOM is more capacitive filter branches. In case the thyristor
possible. based SVC is used for Negative Phase Sequence
control, additional 3rd harmonic filters have to be
installed as well. These branches are not necessary
with a multilevel converter. This will lead to:
less possible resonances with the network,
smaller space requirements on site,
less complex design of the installation, and
lower losses especially at 0 Mvar output of
the STATCOM.

The specified Mvar operating range for an SVC

application is very often unsymmetrical. In such
Figure 2: Output voltage of a multilevel converter scenarios, using a STATCOM with its symmetrical
and reference voltage output would lead to unnecessary overdesign in one
Mvar output direction. Obviously the solution would
The STATCOM is connected via a transformer to the be more costly and could not provide the same return
HV grid. On the medium voltage side of the on investment unless the additional operating range
transformer, the most simplistic configuration has a positive value-add.
consists of the converter itself and a coupling reactor An obvious and commonly used solution is to
connected in series. combine a SVC or a STATCOM with mechanically
The maximum steady state current output of the switched devices such as shunt capacitor banks or
converter depends on the capability of the installed shunt reactors. Although such external devices are
power electronic switches, thereby the current relatively simple and fairly economic, they come with
(leading or lagging) is irrelevant. Therefore, the some disadvantages which have to be taken into
STATCOM will always have a symmetrical output consideration. These are the obvious discharge time
range. of mechanically switched capacitor (MSC) banks of
The current output is independent of the voltage level several minutes before re-energization and the overall
on the high voltage side of the transformer. This limited number of switching cycles of a circuit-
breaker reducing the overall flexibility of the
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installation. By means of measuring the actual TSC Especially at voltages below 0.8pu on the HV side the
DC capacitor voltage and coordinated switching in at combination of a STATCOM with TSC provides
zero crossing of each thyristor valve voltage the TSC higher reactive power output and a significant better
can be switched in without any discharge time. support for the network during contingencies.
Mechanically switched reactors (MSR) increase the
inductive operating range, and they can be switched Considering high and even further increasing costs of
on and off without any delay (other than the circuit- energy the evaluation of generated losses of a Static
breaker), however they do create a DC offset to the Var Compensator is getting more and more important
system voltage imposing risk of saturation of CTs or and can have a decisive impact on the installed
transformers contrary to thyristor switched reactor configuration. The nominal operating zone of such
branches. kind of devices will be at or nearby 0 Mvar during
The solution of combining the benefits of the multi- normal operating conditions. With this strategy the
level STATCOM and providing an unsymmetrical maximum Mvar output for under- and overvoltage
operating range in a highly economic and flexible contingencies is available. The minimum active
manner is depicted in the simplified single line power losses at 0 Mvar define the economically
diagram of Figure 3. A STATCOM branch is optimized design of a Static Var Compensator.
connected in parallel to a Thyrsitor Switched
Capacitor (TSC) on the same MV busbar.

Figure 4: Voltage / Current characteristic of Hybrid

SVC (STATCOM with TSC)

The STATCOM technology also with integrated

thyristor switched branches will achieve this goal.
Since the Hybrid SVC does not need filters, no load
losses are significantly lower than those of a
Figure 3: Simplified single line of STATCOM with conventional SVC, where filters have to be actively
parallel connected thyristor switched compensated to achieve a zero MVAr output.
capacitor (TSC)

Figure 4 shows the corresponding Voltage / Current III. CONTROL AND PROTECTION
characteristic of the described Hybrid SVC solution
from Figure 3 at the point of common coupling. The The STATCOM / Hybrid SVC control and protection
control will regulate the output current according to system consists of the following devices:
the control parameters and the corresponding voltage Control system
on the HV side. If the required capacitive output
current is higher than the STATCOM rating, the TSC Protection system
will be switched in and the output of the STATCOM DFR (Digital Fault Recorder)
will be set in such a way, that the reactive output is Decentralized Input/Output- units
identical to the previous output before switching. Cooling control
Additionally a hatched area is marked in Figure 4,
which shows the increased output capability of the
The STATCOM control system design can be divided
Hybrid solution from Figure 3 in comparison to a
into open loop control (OLC), closed loop control
solution only based on thyristor technology.
(CLC) and protection functions. Siemens uses the
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SIMATIC WinCC system as the HMI system which units which perform the time stamping for SER and
provides operation, monitoring, operator guidance, forward the incoming data stream (digital or analog)
SER (Sequence of Event Recording), event analysis to the DFR system by means of fiber optics. This
and trend plots to control and to analyze the system is very compact and is taking over multiple
STATCOM and TSC/TSR system. All three tasks.
functionalities, CLC, OLC and protection, are For the protection of the Hybrid SVC, e.g.
realized in one master control system (SIMATIC transformer differential, busbar and feeder protection,
TDC, Technology & Drive Control) allowing for a conventional protection relays are used.
complete integration of both technologies within the The STATCOM system is operated in a delta
Hybrid SVC. configuration, ungrounded in order to limit any
The main task of the closed loop control is the fast hazardous currents in the power parts of the
voltage control (step response time 30ms) of the STATCOM system. In case of a faulty STATCOM or
measured high voltage busbar voltage. To achieve TSC/TSR branch, the Hybrid SVC will be switched
this, the voltage controller sends the derived current off, the relevant branch will be isolated and the
reference signal to the converter control Hybrid SVC will be switched back online
(PLUSCONTROL) system, which is responsible for automatically. The system operation can be continued
control and supervision of the powermodules of the in a degraded mode, whether with the STATCOM
STATCOM. only or the TSC in step control.
Each SVC PLUS powermodule is connected via two
fiber optic cables to the converter control system. One
fiber optic cable is needed for monitoring of the IV. OPERATION PRINCIPLE
capacitor voltage and the status of the 4 IGBTs of
each powermodule. The second fiber optic cable is If the demand of reactive capacitive power is rising
needed for switching the IGBTs on and off, by (e.g. due to undervoltage), the STATCOM is operated
electrical pulses. up to its converter current limit. Breaching this limit,
Additionally the CLC also sends electrical firing the TSC will be switched in, instantaneously the
pulses to the Valve Base Electronics converting it to STACOM is set to inductive output to compensate
optical pulses which are then sent to the light the TSC reactive injection to guarantee an operation
triggered thyristor modules. For monitoring of with minimized voltage bumps. Afterwards the
thyristor condition, one fiber optic for each thyristor STATCOM continues with the linear operation, to
acts as feedback fiber optic. achieve the required HV voltage.
In case a TSC/TSR is switched in or out, the CLC
controls the STATCOM in a manner that the
switching will happen with a minimized voltage SVC PLUS

bump.
with TSC
SVC PLUS

The open loop control regulates, interlocks and

supervises all switchyard devices and handles the 200 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 -20 -40 -60 -80 MVAr

complete sequence of event recording which includes

all installed equipment inside of the control room (e.g. Figure 5: Exemplary operation range of hybrid
auxiliary supply, HVAC), valve room (e.g. cooling system
system) and yard (e.g. transformer). The OLC is also
The step response of the hybrid system is 30ms,
responsible for the time synchronization of the whole
according to IEEE 1031-2000, with a maximum
control and protection system by use of GPS signal.
overshoot of 5%. This step response time is less than
Additionally the OLC handles all sequences of the
the step response of a conventional SVC.
Hybrid SVC, as for example, the start and auto
The amount of switched branches like TSC or TSR
reclosure sequence of the STATCOM. The OLC also
connected to a STATCOM in a Hybrid SVC is
communicates with the cooling system and handles
theoretically unlimited. There are already concepts
the SER created in the cooling system control.
realized with up to 4 switched branches.
The overvoltage protection of the STATCOM and
TSC/TSR is also programmed inside the master
control system. For converter protection the actual
V. COOLING SYSTEM
converter current is supervised inside the converter
control system, in case of over current the SVC PLUS
Both STATCOM and TSC/TSR need a liquid cooling
and TSC/TSR are tripped immediately.
system (deionized water/glycol) to lower the
As a decentralized unit for SER and DFR
temperatures of the semiconductors.
functionality several Input/Output-units are used.
As both systems are installed in the same valve room,
Most of the external interfaces are connected to these
only one cooling system is necessary for the cooling
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of IGBT and thyristor valve. For maintenance of technologies and can be easily integrated into a
TSC/TSR or STATCOM, the related cooling circuit Hybrid SVC. While a STATCOM alone is often used
of IGBT or thyristor valve can be by-passed, the for very quick dynamic voltage support and superior
electrical system can be operated in degraded mode. undervoltage performance, but operating around 0
MVAr for most of the time, the extension to a Hybrid
SVC with TSC or TSR branches will ensure an
VI. INTEGRATION OF TECHNOLOGIES enlarged operating range and still provide enhanced
response time.
To allow flexible and efficient design of a Hybrid This paper has discussed the various benefits of the
SVC, it is necessary to split the installation into Hybrid SVC. Nevertheless, the applications for
modules that can be standardized. This leads to a dynamic voltage support in high voltage networks
unique design based on few variations that allows the have unique electrical and physical conditions, and
use of similar components keeping the costs of the consequently, the selection of optimum technology
total installation low. Flexibility is not limited by will always be on a case-to-case decision.
such standardization.
The SVC PLUS (STATCOM) converters extendable
to fully dynamic Hybrid SVCs (with TSC/TSR) are
sized between 75 to 125MVAr and multiples of it.
The standardization of the symmetrical SVC PLUS
converters into discrete power ranges fixes the
voltage on LV-side of the transformer. To connect
TSC/TSR branches, the connecting voltage of the
additional branch must follow to the standard value of
the SVC PLUS. The branch is therefore determined
by the requested reactive power. The branch
components can be designed for this maximum
thyristor current to achieve a common design over all
discrete SVC PLUS power ranges.
All other components needed for a TSC are the same
as those of a conventional SVC branch. The valve
tower arrangement, which is already modularized in
classic applications, is only dependent on the
transformer medium voltage, and therefore fixed also
by the discrete STATCOM converter choice.
The same applies to the component insulation like
insulators, current transformer and wall bushings.
This leads to an efficient configurable Hybrid SVC
system which comprises the advantages of VSC
technology and cheap bulk-power of a TSC not losing
dynamic response of voltage-sourced converters.
The footprint of a SVC PLUS solution is already very
compact. The extension to a Hybrid SVC only
requires some more space for the respective thyristor
switched branch. All in all, the Hybrid SVC will
come with space savings compared to a conventional
SVC, making this solution more interesting in case
available space is limited.
The common use of the converter building, auxiliary
services and cooling devices of a TSC/TSR and SVC
PLUS installation efficiently increases the small
space requirements of a Hybrid SVC solution.

VII. CONCLUSION

Both multilevel STATCOM and thyristor based Static

Var Compensators are today very mature