IEC TR 63463:2024

Life extension guidelines for HVDC converter stations

IEC TR 63463:2024 provides guidelines for the general procedure for performing life assessment for an HVDC converter station. Following this, a more detailed description of performance issues of the thyristor based HVDC systems is given and the life assessment measures of equipment and guidelines for accessing the techno-economic life of equipment are given. This document also deals with information for specification of refurbishing HVDC system and the testing of the refurbished and replaced equipment. Lastly, this document outlines environmental issues and regulatory issues involved in the life assessment and concludes with a financial analysis of the refurbishment options.

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 08-Jan-2024
• ICS: 29.020 - Electrical engineering in general
• ICS: 29.240.10 - Substations. Surge arresters
• Technical Committee: TC 115 - High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission for DC voltages above 100 kV
• Drafting Committee: WG 12 - TC 115/WG 12
• Current Stage: PPUB - Publication issued
• Start Date: 24-Nov-2023
• Completion Date: 09-Jan-2024

Standards Content (Sample)

IEC TR 63463 ®
Edition 1.0 2024-01
TECHNICAL
REPORT
colour
inside
Life extension guidelines for HVDC converter stations

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IEC TR 63463 ®
Edition 1.0 2024-01
TECHNICAL
REPORT
colour
inside
Life extension guidelines for HVDC converter stations

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
ICS 29.020; 29.240.10 ISBN 978-2-8322-8064-5

– 2 – IEC TR 63463:2024 © IEC 2024
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 7
INTRODUCTION . 9
1 Scope . 12
2 Normative references . 12
3 Terms and definitions . 12
4 General procedure for performing a life assessment . 14
4.1 General . 14
4.2 Preparation . 15
4.3 Team . 15
4.4 Assessment process . 16
4.5 Deliverable . 17
4.6 Life assessment timetable . 17
5 Thyristor based HVDC systems performance issues . 20
5.1 General . 20
5.2 Survey of availability and reliability of HVDC systems in the world . 20
5.2.1 General . 20
5.2.2 AC and auxiliary equipment . 20
5.3 Operating history . 21
5.4 Major equipment/system/sub-system failure/refurbishment summary . 21
5.5 Life assessment and various options for a refurbishment project . 22
5.6 Methods for assessing reliability, availability and maintainability of existing
components . 24
5.7 Basis for replacement/refurbishment of equipment . 25
5.8 Performance after replacement and refurbishment . 27
6 Life assessment and life extension measures of equipment . 27
6.1 General . 27
6.2 Spares . 28
6.3 Converter transformers . 28
6.3.1 General . 28
6.3.2 Life assessment . 29
6.3.3 Refurbishment/Replacement . 29
6.4 HVDC control and protection . 30
6.4.1 General . 30
6.4.2 HVDC converter controls . 30
6.4.3 Valve base electronics (VBE). 31
6.5 Thyristor valves . 32
6.5.1 General . 32
6.5.2 Life assessment . 32
6.5.3 Refurbishment/Replacement . 33
6.6 Valve cooling system . 34
6.6.1 General . 34
6.6.2 Life assessment . 34
6.6.3 Refurbishment/Replacement . 34
6.7 DC equipment . 35
6.7.1 General . 35
6.7.2 Oil-filled smoothing reactors . 35

6.7.3 Air-core smoothing reactors . 36
6.7.4 DC voltage dividers . 36
6.7.5 DC current transducers . 37
6.7.6 DC surge arresters . 37
6.7.7 DC support insulators and bus work. 38
6.7.8 DC switches . 39
6.7.9 Station auxiliary supplies . 39
6.7.10 Earth electrodes and electrode lines . 40
6.8 Cyber security . 40
6.9 AC filters . 41
6.9.1 General . 41
6.9.2 AC filter capacitors . 42
6.9.3 AC filter reactors . 42
6.9.4 AC filter resistors . 43
6.10 DC filters . 43
7 Guideline for assessing techno-economic life of major equipment: Operational
issues – Maintenance cost/management and availability of spares . 43
7.1 Types of components used within HVDC systems . 43
7.1.1 General . 43
7.1.2 Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components . 44
7.1.3 Configured products . 44
7.1.4 Bespoke (customized) products . 44
7.2 Management of obsolescence . 44
7.2.1 General . 44
7.2.2 COTS, configured COTS components and bespoke components . 45
7.2.3 Components designed to meet a specific specification. 45
8 Recommendation for specification of refurbishing HVDC system . 46
8.1 General . 46
8.2 Main components of a converter station: guideline for the specification . 47
8.2.1 Thyristor valves . 47
8.2.2 Cooling of the valves . 48
8.2.3 Converter transformers . 49
8.2.4 Smoothing reactor . 50
8.2.5 Control system . 51
8.3 Interfaces . 53
8.3.1 General . 53
8.3.2 Electrical interfaces . 53
8.3.3 Mechanical interfaces . 53
8.3.4 Environmental interfaces . 53
8.3.5 Space interface . 53
8.3.6 Auxiliaries interface . 54
8.3.7 I/O interfaces . 54
8.3.8 Example: valve and control system refurbishment . 54
8.4 Maintainability including spares requirement . 55
8.5 Cost minimization . 55
8.6 Replacement time minimization . 56
8.7 Operation outage minimization . 56
8.7.1 Outage due to refurbishment works: brownfield and greenfield . 56
8.7.2 Outage due to a forced maintenance . 57

– 4 – IEC TR 63463:2024 © IEC 2024
8.7.3 Outage for scheduled maintenance . 57
8.8 Guarantees, performance and warranties . 57
9 Testing of refurbished/replacement equipment. 58
10 Environmental issues.
...