A91-Transformer Trends in 2023

1.???? As we bid farewell to 2023, let us look at transformer developments in 2023. The industry is probably going through some of the best periods of the last 50 years. All leading transformer manufacturers are fully booked, and delivery is extended by over 12-18 months. This boom, probably the first time after the post-World War II bonanza, is mainly due to the surge in demand from renewable energy power sources and the huge replacement market of some of the old matured markets. When a 500 MW thermal plant is added to the grid, the extra transformers required are 4-6 units, while a solar farm of the same capacity requires 70-200 transformers, though the total transformer MVA may be the same as for a thermal station. When considering the utilisation factor of solar power, the transformer numbers have to be trebled to get energy equivalent from thermal power of the same MW. The industry must initiate intense development work to deliver reliable, low-loss, maintenance-free special transformers for this new sector. Transformer demand may increase further thanks to green hydrogen and electric vehicle requirements. ???

2.???? Manufacturers are adding new factory bays or relocating to enhance the production capacity. There were cases in history when added production capacity soon turned idle, as happened after the oil shocks of the 1970s. Sustainability is getting attention in the design and manufacture of transformers. Digitalisation and AI will change how transformers are engineered and produced in the coming decades.

?3.???? Standards

?IEC Standards

?IEC 60076-25:2022 PRV

Power transformers - Part 25: Neutral grounding resistors

?IEC 60567:2023 PRV

Oil-filled electrical equipment - Sampling of free gases and analysis of free and dissolved gases in mineral oils and other insulating liquids - Guidance

IEEE Standards

• C57.168-2023 - IEEE Guide for Low-Frequency Dielectric Testing for Distribution, Power, and Regulating Transformers
• ?C57.136-2023 - IEEE Guide for Audible Sound of Liquid-Immersed Power Transformers
• ?C37.75-2023 - IEEE Standard for Pad-Mounted, Pole-Mounted, and Submersible Switchgear Enclosures and Associated Control Enclosures--Coastal and Non-Coastal Environmental Integrity
• C57.100-2022 - IEEE Standard for Test Procedure for Thermal Evaluation of Insulation Systems for Liquid-Immersed Distribution, Power, and Regulating Transformers
• ?C37.110-2023 - IEEE Guide for the Application of Current Transformers Used for Protective Relaying Purposes
• C57.19.00-2023 - IEEE Standard for General Requirements and Test Procedure for Power Apparatus Bushings

? IEEE Standards- Revisions

• PC57.105-2019/Cor1/D3, Jun 2023 - IEEE Draft Guide for Application of Transformer Connections in Three-Phase Electrical Systems - Corrigendum 1: Update Table 1--Application characteristics of connections
• PC37.109/D3.6, Aug 2023 - IEEE Draft Guide for the Protection of Shunt Reactors
• PC57.143/D1.4, May 2023 - IEEE Draft Guide for Application of Monitoring ???Equipment to Liquid-Immersed Transformers and Components
• ?PC57.12.28/D7.3, Sept 2023 - IEEE Draft Standard for Pad-Mounted Equipment--Enclosure Integrity
• ? ?PC57.12.29/D7.3, Sept 2023 - IEEE Draft Standard for Pad-Mounted Equipment--Enclosure Integrity for Coastal Environments
• PC57.160/D7.6, Sept 2023 - IEEE Approved Draft Guide for the Electrical Measurement of Partial Discharge in High Voltage Bushings and Instrument Transformers
• ??PC57.113/D6, Aug 2023 - IEEE Approved Draft Recommended Practice for Partial Discharge Measurement in Liquid-Filled Power Transformers and Shunt Reactors
• PC57.12.35/D5.2, Aug 2023 - IEEE Draft Standard for Information Coding for Distribution Transformers and Step-Voltage Regulators
• ?PC57.12.24/D12, Jul 2023 - IEEE Approved Draft Standard for Submersible, Three-Phase Transformers, 3750 kVA and Smaller: High Voltage, 34 500 GrdY/19 920 Volts and Below; Low Voltage, 600 Volts and Below
• ?P65700-19-03/CD, July 2023 - IEEE/IEC Draft Standard - Bushings for DC Application
• PC57.150/D6, Jun 2023 - IEEE Approved Draft Guide for the Transportation of Transformers and Reactors Rated 10,000 kVA or Higher
• ?PC57.12.20/D11, Jun 2023 - IEEE Approved Draft Standard for Overhead-Type Distribution Transformers 500 kVA and Smaller; High Voltage, 34 500 V and Below; Low Voltage, 7970/13 800Y V and Below.
• PC57.163/D1, May 2023 - IEEE Approved ADraft Guide for Establishing Power Transformer Capability while under Geomagnetic Disturbances

• ? ?PC57.12.80/D1.4, May 2023 - IEEE Draft Standard Terminology for Power and Distribution Transformers
• ?PC57.12.40/D1, Jan 2023 - IEEE Draft Standard for Network, Three-Phase ????Transformers, 2500 kVA and Smaller; High Voltage, 34 500 V and Below; Low Voltage, 600 V and Below; Subway and Vault Types (Liquid Immersed)
• ?PC57.131/D1.2, Mar 2023 - IEEE Draft Standard Performance Requirements ??and Test Methods for Tap-Changers
• ?PC57.165/D6.6, Mar 2023 - IEEE Draft Guide for Temperature Measurements ??for Liquid Immersed Transformers and Reactors
• PC57.12.52/D11, Mar 2023 - IEEE Draft Standard for Sealed Dry-Type Distribution and Power Transformers
• PC57.19.02/D2.5, Feb 2023 - IEEE Approved Draft Standard for the Design and Performance Requirements of Bushings Applied to Liquid Immersed Distribution Transformers

?4.???? Books

M/s Weidman, Switzerland, published their latest book, Transformerboard III, on September 1, 2022, during the CIGRE session in Paris. This is coming after the publication of Part 1 of this popular reference book in 1979. They released a revised edition 1.1 in 2023, incorporating various editorial amendment

H.P. Moser, V. Dahinden, Transformer Board -I, Weidman Rapperswil, Switzerland, Pages 120, 1979.

H.P. Moser, V. Dahinden, Transformer Board- II, Weidmann, Rapperswil, Switzerland, Pages222, 1987.

?Weidmann, Transformer Board- III, Weidmann Electrical Technology AG, Rapperswil, Switzerland, ed1.0 Pages 296,2022, ed1.1 2023.

?5.???? Products

• ?·NETL (National Energy Technology Laboratory), in collaboration with the University of Pittsburgh and Sensible Photonics Inc., developed a sensor technology known as the Transformer Watchman. It has received the 2023 R&D 100 Award in the IT/Electrical category. The product claims to safeguard transformer infrastructure, prevent service downtime, and potentially save billions of dollars while preserving lives. Transformer Watchman consists of an integrated fibre optics-based sensor system that continuously monitors transformers' dissolved gases, acoustics, and temperatures. This real-time monitoring system provides early warnings of potential dangers, improving the reliability of power delivery.
• Hitachi Energy introduced liquid-filled MV transformers with inherent transient voltage protection under the brand name TVP (Transient Voltage Protection). These will mitigate the transient voltage peaks caused by reignition and resonance amplification during circuit breaker (VCB) switching operations, thereby protecting transformers and downstream equipment from switching transient voltages. They had earlier introduced the dry-type transformers with the same transient protection arrangement.

?6.???? Transformer Companies

• ????Hitachi Energy has put up a new factory in China.? Hitachi Energy relocated its Chongqing factory to a new location in Liangjiang New Area, southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, marking a significant step in meeting the surging demand for electrification in the region through innovative and digital manufacturing. Originally established in 1998 as the company's first joint venture in western China, the facility has evolved into one of Hitachi Energy's largest transformer research and manufacturing hubs. Annual production once reached there to 50,000 MVA. ?It provides various products and services, including power transformers, shunt reactors, high-voltage direct current (HVDC) converter transformers, insulation kits, and comprehensive services. As the company claimed in its press release, the relocation of the factory to Liangjiang New Area in early 2023 transformed it into a modern intelligent factory with significantly enhanced production efficiency. Industrial automation and robotics have been integrated into manufacturing processes to increase speed and precision. Moreover, energy management systems have been implemented to enable real-time data acquisition, analysis, and timely equipment maintenance, ensuring cost-effectiveness throughout the value chain. To align with the company's sustainability goals, the modern factory has also implemented environmentally responsible measures to reduce its carbon footprint.

(September)

• Doble, a global leader in manufacturing diagnostic test and measurement instruments, announced the consolidation of its corporate brand under the “Doble Engineering” company name worldwide. With this, the “Altanova” company name will be retired. They will present themselves as “Doble Engineering” to all, with a focus on their product brands, namely, Doble?, ISA?, Morgan Schaffer?, Phenix Technologies?, TECHIMP?, and Vanguard Instruments?. (September) To investment firm Triton, Siemens Energy sells Trench, its high voltage grid component business (Bushings, Instrument Transformers and coilproducts. Trench has 2,400 employees and nine factory locations in Germany, Austria, France, Bulgaria, Italy, Canada, and China.

? (October)

• Shell Company acquires M/s Midel’s oil division.

(October)

7.???? I shall update this article if readers can supplement this list.