ABB to help Washington D.C. strengthen electrical network

March 8, 2018 - ABB will supply gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) to strengthen the U.S. capital’s electrical network. The order is a part of the Capital Grid project and was awarded by Pepco Holdings, a member of the Exelon family of companies, an electric and gas utility company serving more than 2 million people in Washington, D.C.
The U.S. capital is home to about 680,000 people. The city is experiencing its highest population growth in four decades, projected to reach about 900,000 by 2035, fueling an increased demand for electricity. The Capital Grid project was initiated to replace aging grid infrastructure and increase transmission capacity in the District of Columbia and Maryland, to address current and future energy needs. The upgrade will also help build grid resilience to withstand and recover from unforeseen events such as severe storms. It will help accommodate new energy sources reflecting the District of Columbia’s recently announced ambition to generate half its electricity from renewables by 2032.
The Capital Grid project aims to create a networked system connecting multiple substations through underground transmission lines from the north to the south of the region. As part of the order, ABB will design, supply and install 69-kilovolt (kV) and 230 kV GIS for four substations within the network. GIS technology was chosen due its reliability and compactness, key considerations when land is scarce and at a premium. It enables substations to be housed in buildings to protect them in severe weather conditions, while saving up to 70 percent space compared to conventional air-insulated substations.
In a power system, a GIS controls and protects the network from power outages. It facilitates reliable supply of electricity and can be safely operated in confined spaces and harsh environments. offers ratings and applications from 72.5 kV to 1200 kV and has a global installed base of more than 30,000 bays.
About ABB
ABB is a specialist in electrification products, robotics and motion, industrial automation and power grids, serving customers in utilities, industry and transport & infrastructure globally. Continuing a history of innovation spanning more than 130 years, ABB operates in more than 100 countries with about 135,000 employees.

Check out our free e-newsletters
to read more great articles.
- Posted in:
- Industry
- Related Portals:
- Electrical & Control Panels, Factory Automation, Power & Energy
MORE INDUSTRY NEWS
-
Verizon helps Virginia shipbuilding company implement 5G service
With 5G’s increased bandwidth and ultra-low latency, NNS will be equipped to meet network connectivity demands and will test new ways its...
-
Kinedyne announces John Seliga as Vice President of Finance
A certified public accountant, Seliga holds a master’s degree in business administration from Cleveland State University and a bachelor’s...
-
IFR Report: Korea hits record 300,000 industrial robots
Within five years, the country has doubled its number of industrial robots. Following Japan and China, the country ranked third in 2018. But the...
-
Senseye partners with ATS Global to accelerate smart factory strategies
ATS will support Senseye's clients with the design, implementation, or integration of automated machine data systems such as historians or...
-
ARC Advisory Group Report: ABB leads DCS market for 20th consecutive year
According to the report, ABB’s presence in many end-user industries was a major factor in this success. The DCS market saw its main growth in oil...
RELATED
-
Litum IoT helps Ferrero Group enhance worker tracking
Ferrero needed a way to confirm that all its employees could be safely accounted when an emergency evacuation was underway.
-
Association for Advancing Automation Report: North American machine vision market down in 2019
Machine vision systems saw a decrease of 2% year over year, at $599.9 million. This category includes smart cameras and application specific...
-
The Death of the Family Album: Specifying the right cleanroom environment
By Mark Howard, EU Automation
It is vital to understand how cleanrooms truly operate if you are to get the best out of yours. This article... -
Advancing Automation: Sensors & Instruments, Volume XXI
With so many new tools and capabilities, it can be hard to keep up with innovations. That’s why Automation.com remains committed to being the top...
-
ABB uses swimming robots to help Australian silicon company enhance transformer inspections
Simcoa Operations sought the expertise of the local ABB Transformer Service team in Australia to perform an internal inspection for one of their...