ABB Power Grids celebrated its 20th anniversary since the establishment of its high-voltage gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) manufacturing unit in Xiamen, China. Founded in 1999, ABB High Voltage Switchgear (Xiamen) Co., Ltd. that started operations on Xiamen Island has grown from strength to strength. Last year, the facility was moved to the Xiang’an District in the northeastern region of Xiamen, an island metropolis in the southeast Fujian Province, which is part of the company’s strategy to create an advanced manufacturing hub.
Today, it is a state-of-the-art facility that includes manufacturing, high-voltage test labs, centers for research and development, training and service. The unit manufactures GIS, gas-insulated lines (GIL) and GIS components from 72.5-kilovolt (kV) up to 1,200kV, the highest voltage level in the world. The facility also houses state-of-the-art test laboratories to perform tests on all high-voltage products up to 1,200kV.
Officials from Xiamen Torch Development Zone for High Technology Industries and more than 100 local and international customers attended the event, celebrating the journey that the company had over the past two decades.
GIS is a compact metal encapsulated switchgear that uses pressurized insulating gas and enables safe operations in confined spaces while significantly reducing equipment footprint. The GIS controls and protects the network from power outages and facilitates reliable electricity supply. A key enabler for urbanization where land is scarce and costly, GIS can occupy as little as 10 percent of the space of an air-insulated switchgear (AIS).
“Xiamen was the starting point for ABB's business in China and has played a key role in our development in the country”, says Zhang Jinquan, Senior Vice President of ABB Group and Head of Greater China Region, Power Grids business. “In the near future, we will strengthen our footprint with the move of our surge arrester manufacturing to Xiamen. This will help to develop the industry and technical talents in Xiamen. Furthermore, ABB is collaborating with King Long Motor Group to jointly develop an e-bus solution with fast flash-chargers system, an environmentally friendly solution for the city of Xiamen.”
Over the past two decades, the company has supplied over 7,000 GIS bays to key projects in China and globally. From the Bird’s Nest and Water Cube of the Beijing Olympic stadiums, Ningxia Qixiang 800kV GIS substation, Qinghai-Tibet Railway to the first of its kind ultra high voltage 1,000kV GIL under the Yangtze River. It is also supporting the ‘Belt and Road’ initiative. It recently won the award of "Electric Product Innovation Prize” in China Top 100 Electric Companies. In the recent years, the GIS facility in Xiamen has expanded its presence globally and supplied to key projects in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Africa and South America.
ABB pioneered GIS technology 50 years ago and continues to drive innovations in this space. As a market and technology leader in high-voltage GIS technology, ABB offers ratings and applications from 72.5kV to 1,200kV and has a global installed base of more than 35,000 bays. ABB’s latest offering includes eco-efficient and digital capabilities.
ABB (ABBN: SIX Swiss Ex) is a technology leader that is driving the digital transformation of industries. With a history of innovation spanning more than 130 years, ABB has four customer-focused, globally leading businesses: Electrification, Industrial Automation, Motion, and Robotics & Discrete Automation, supported by the ABB Ability™ digital platform. ABB’s Power Grids business will be divested to Hitachi in 2020. ABB operates in more than 100 countries with about 147,000 employees. ABB has a full range of business activities in China, including R&D, manufacturing, sales and services, with near 20,000 employees located in more than 130 cities, 44 local companies, and online and offline channels across around 700 cities. www.abb.com
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