Voltage Uprate of Transmission Lines: Motivation, Benefits, Considerations and Case Studies

As load and generators are connected to the power system, constraints to the transmission of power can arise. Voltage uprating of transmission lines involves raising the operating voltage of an existing transmission line to a higher voltage to increase the transfer capacity. This option can relieve power transfer constraints quicker, with less environmental impact and at a lesser cost than building new lines. In this paper, the rationale for, the benefits of, the key technical considerations in, and some selected case studies on voltage uprate are presented.