Mega green project in Brazil a milestone

Marking a historic milestone in global energy infrastructure, the Belo Monte Ultra-High Voltage Direct Current Phase II project in Brazil has established a landmark paradigm for cross-regional clean energy transmission, sustainable infrastructure development, and international green power cooperation.

Independently invested, constructed, and operated by State Grid Corp of China under a 30-year concession agreement, the initiative represents a key leap in high-end energy technology export.

Spanning a staggering 2,534 kilometers, the transmission line currently stands as one of the longest of its kind in the world.

The megaproject serves as a vital "green artery", continuously transmitting massive volumes of clean hydroelectric power generated at the Belo Monte dam in the Amazon basin in northern Brazil directly to the country's heavily populated and economically vital southeastern load centers, including the metropolitan hub of Rio de Janeiro, said State Grid.

For decades, Latin America's largest economy has grappled with a severe structural challenge: a spatial mismatch between its natural resource distribution and its energy demand. While the northern region boasts abundant water resources ideal for hydroelectric generation, the vast majority of industrial and residential electricity consumption is concentrated in the southeast, said Ye Xiaoning, a senior engineer at the State Grid Energy Research Institute.

By bridging this immense geographical divide, the Belo Monte Phase II project has successfully resolved this long-standing developmental bottleneck.

"The project stands as a benchmark demonstration for the internationalization of China's complete set of UHV technologies," he said.

According to Ye, it was precisely on the back of Phase I's successful performance and execution that State Grid was able to smoothly secure 100 percent independent concession rights during the Phase II bidding process.

Building on the solid foundation and operational success of Phase I and Phase II, State Grid has recently taken another giant step in expanding South America's energy infrastructure.

In a landmark move that will fundamentally reshape Brazil's green energy infrastructure, State Grid has broken ground on a new 1,468-kilometer ultra-high voltage power superhighway, marking the largest electricity transmission investment in the South American nation's history.

The massive 800-kilovolt direct current transmission line will serve as a vital energy artery, channeling bundled wind, solar, and hydropower from Brazil's resource-rich northeast directly to major central and eastern load centers.

Scheduled for full operation by 2029, the project, in addition to the nearly 1,500-km transmission line, features two newly built converter stations and related supporting facilities, boasting a rated transmission capacity of 5 million kilowatts.

"Building on the technical foundation established by the earlier Belo Monte projects, this third project represents a major evolutionary leap in grid capability," said Ye.

The seamless progression from the record-setting Belo Monte project to this latest power superhighway demonstrates how China's cutting-edge grid capabilities continue to drive Latin America's long-term green transition and energy security, he added.

Shu Yinbiao, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said earlier that China's modern power grid technology can provide support for the interconnection of global infrastructure.

Continued technological progress is essential to support the large-scale deployment of clean energy solutions, he said.