Use of modern technology and innovative design to upgrade a distribution substation to a transmission substation in an urban location

This paper describes the design and project decisions taken in a project which successfully uprated a 38 kV distribution substation to a 110 kV transmission substation within a compact urban environment on the west coast of Ireland. It describes the phasing of the project and the measures taken to ensure service continuity and to reduce the risk of substation outages during construction. The paper includes details of the project scope, site and network constraints and issues encountered during the planning and construction periods. The construction on a compact site located in a busy urban location required detailed planning of the logistics for switchgear delivery and assembly.