Luleå, Sweden – March 2029 – Svenska Kraftnät, Sweden’s national power grid operator, has confirmed 99.8% operational reliability across its 18 mixed-voltage (132kV/220kV) substations in northern Sweden—six months after fully deploying the ABB RED670 Intelligent Electronic Device (IED). The upgrade, which replaced 25-year-old electromechanical protection systems, addressed critical gaps in extreme weather resilience, renewable energy integration, and remote maintenance—all while leveraging the RED670’s industry-leading protection and control features to cut unplanned outages by 78%.
The Challenge: Hardened Substations Need Next-Gen Protection
Svenska Kraftnät’s northern Swedish substations—including key sites in Kiruna, Umeå, and Luleå—serve as critical links between the country’s 3GW Markbygden Wind Farm and urban/remote load centers. These facilities face unique stressors that demanded a more capable IED solution:
- Arctic Temperature Extremes: Winter temperatures regularly plummet to -35°C, causing legacy relays to freeze, short-circuit, or fail to trip during faults. Between 2026–2027, cold-related outages affected 80,000 residents and mining operations, costing €1.2 million in compensation.
- Wind Energy Variability: Sudden 50%+ drops in wind output (common during Nordic storms) created voltage/frequency swings that tripped outdated relays 14 times in 2027, disrupting power to industrial customers.
- Remote Site Access: Substations are spread across 30,000 km² of taiga and Arctic tundra, with winter travel times exceeding 6 hours via snowmobile or helicopter. On-site maintenance of legacy systems cost €420,000 annually.
- Legacy System Obsolescence: 80% of existing relays lacked digital communication capabilities, preventing integration with Svenska Kraftnät’s national SCADA system and leaving faults undetected until outages occurred.
“Our substations operate in some of the harshest conditions on Earth, while balancing the most variable energy mix in Europe,” said Karin Bergström, Svenska Kraftnät’s Northern Region Operations Director. “We needed an IED that wasn’t just ‘weatherproof’—it had to deliver pinpoint protection, adapt to wind fluctuations in real time, and let us manage everything from our Stockholm control center.”
ABB RED670 IED: Core Features Driving Substation Resilience
After a 12-month trial at the Kiruna 132kV Substation, Svenska Kraftnät selected the RED670 for its
targeted substation protection features and Arctic-hardened design. Below are the key functions that solved the operator’s critical pain points:
1. Arctic-Grade Environmental Hardening
- Wide Temperature Range Operation: Certified to IEC 60068-2-1/2/30, the RED670 operates reliably from -40°C to +70°C. Its internal PTC (Positive Temperature Coefficient) heating element automatically activates at -10°C, preventing condensation and freezing of critical components (e.g., relay contacts, LCD displays).
- IP54-Rated Enclosure: Sealed aluminum housing with double-gasketed doors resists snow, ice, and dust ingress—tested to withstand 100km/h Arctic winds and 50cm of snowfall without performance degradation.
- Vibration & Shock Resistance: Compliant with IEC 60068-2-6/27, the IED endures the vibrations of nearby transformers and the shock of winter ice storms, eliminating mechanical failure points common in legacy relays.
2. Adaptive Renewable Energy Protection Algorithms
- Dynamic Impedance Monitoring: The RED670’s built-in “Wind Farm Mode” uses a 1kHz sampling rate to track power flow changes. When wind output drops by 30%+ in 5 seconds, the IED adjusts overcurrent pickup thresholds by 20% to avoid false trips, while maintaining protection against genuine faults (e.g., line-to-ground shorts).
- Voltage/Frequency Ride-Through: Compliant with EN 50160, the IED tolerates voltage dips to 85% of nominal (220kV) and frequency deviations of ±0.5Hz for up to 10 seconds—critical for stabilizing the grid during wind lulls or sudden load increases.
- DER Coordination Logic: Integrates with wind farm SCADA systems via IEC 61850-9-2LE Sampled Values, enabling the RED670 to receive real-time wind speed/data and pre-adjust protection settings before fluctuations occur.
3. IEC 61850-Certified Digital Integration
- GOOSE Messaging (≤3ms Latency): Enables peer-to-peer communication between RED670 units across substations, allowing for fast fault isolation (e.g., tripping a 220kV line in 5ms to prevent cascading outages).
- MMS (Manufacturing Message Specification): Seamlessly connects to Svenska Kraftnät’s ABB System 800xA SCADA, transmitting 150+ real-time data points per IED (e.g., relay status, fault location, temperature) for centralized monitoring.
- IEC 61850-10 Ed. 2 Compliance: Supports future-proof integration with smart grid technologies, including digital substations and AI-driven grid management platforms.
4. Remote Maintenance & Predictive Diagnostics
- Built-In Web Server: Technicians access the RED670 via secure HTTPS (IEC 62351-6 encrypted) to calibrate protection settings, update firmware, and download fault records—eliminating 95% of on-site visits.
- Predictive Health Monitoring: Monitors 20+ internal components (e.g., CPU load, power supply voltage, communication port status) and alerts operators to degradation 3–4 months in advance (e.g., a failing Ethernet port or low backup battery).
- Fault 录波 (Fault Recorder): Captures 10 minutes of pre/post-fault waveform data at 1kHz sampling rate, enabling root-cause analysis of events (e.g., distinguishing wind-related voltage swings from equipment failures) without additional hardware.
5. Multifunctional Protection in a Single Device
- Distance Protection (Zone 1/2/3): Covers 132kV/220kV transmission lines with 1% accuracy, using quadrilateral characteristics to avoid overreach during high-load conditions.
- Differential Protection: Protects transformers and busbars with restraint curves tailored to Swedish grid parameters, eliminating the need for separate differential relays.
- Over/Underfrequency & Voltage Protection: Prevents grid instability by tripping non-critical loads during frequency dips (e.g., 9.5Hz) or overvoltage events (e.g., >110% of nominal).
Results: Quantifiable Reliability and Cost Savings
Six months after full deployment, the RED670’s targeted features delivered transformative outcomes for Svenska Kraftnät:
| Metric |
Before ABB RED670 |
After ABB RED670 |
Improvement |
| Annual Unplanned Outages |
26 |
5.7 |
78% Reduction |
| Cold-Related Failures |
10/Year |
0 |
100% Elimination |
| Wind-Related False Trips |
14/Year |
1 |
93% Reduction |
| Fault Isolation Time |
2.5 Minutes |
0.005 Minutes |
99.8% Reduction |
| Maintenance Travel Costs |
€420,000/Year |
€21,000/Year |
95% Reduction |
| Grid Reliability |
98.1% |
99.8% |
1.7% Increase |
“The RED670’s fault recorder was a game-changer during a February storm near Luleå,” Bergström said. “We remotely downloaded waveform data, identified a wind-related voltage swing (not a line fault), and adjusted the protection settings in 15 minutes—no technician needed. Before, we would have sent a helicopter team and lost 8 hours of production.”
Olle Larsson, ABB’s Nordic Product Manager for Substation IEDs, noted the RED670’s alignment with Sweden’s energy transition: “The RED670 isn’t just a protection relay—it’s a smart grid enabler. Its ability to adapt to wind energy, operate in Arctic conditions, and integrate with digital systems is critical for Sweden’s 2045 fossil-free goal.”
Svenska Kraftnät plans to expand RED670 deployment to 32 additional substations in central Sweden by 2031, targeting 99.9% grid reliability and a 65% reduction in substation maintenance costs.
