Electrical Substations

The substations at the wave site at Billia Croo and the tidal site at the Fall of Warness are similar in function. They provide isolation switching for the devices under test and are the interface between the EMEC data centre and the UK national grid.

The electrical output performance of each of the devices is measured by equipment within the substation and transmitted to the data centre. EMEC tests the quality of the electricity to demonstrate that the devices can provide a smooth and reliable supply of electricity to the grid.

The metered data is then provided to the appropriate developer through the SCADA system. A correction system is fitted at Billia Croo to allow the overall power factor of the site to be controlled. This power data is logged in the data historian and made available for export and historical trending. It is also available to EMEC for the purpose of providing independent verification of the output from the different wave energy converters. EMEC ensures the confidentiality of the data collected.