CIGRE UK members; undergraduate and postgraduate students; doctoral and post-doctoral researchers; young professionals; early career engineers; the wider community who are interested in this topic.
Event Details:
Date: Wednesday 4th March 2026
Time: 14:00 – 17:00
Venue: Room G36 (Y3 on the Campus Map), University of Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
Attendance: Free to attend but please register.
Event Host: CIGRE UK University Hub – Birmingham Region
Co-Hosts:
Birmingham Energy Institute; University of Birmingham Electrical Power and Control Systems Research Group; School of Engineering, University of Birmingham.
Lecture Topic/Abstract:
The Role of HVDC, HVAC and FACTS in Facilitating the Energy Transition towards Net-Zero in the UK.
This lecture aims to share the fundamental knowledge of reactive power generation and demand. During this lecture, Carl will give an overview and comparisons of HVDC and HVAC, followed by the needs of reactive power on transmission lines. Then the characteristics of FACTS devices will be presented and analysed in detail such as MSCDN, TCR, Fixed Series Capacitors, TSC, STATCOM, etc. Throughout this presentation, Carl will highlight the role of the HVDC, HVAC and FACTS in Facilitating Energy Transition towards Net-Zero in UK.
Carl Barker holds a B.Eng from Staffordshire Polytechnic and a M.Sc. from the University of Bath. He joined GE’s Grid Solutions in Stafford, in 1989, initially working on the design and development of individual HVDC and SVC projects then becoming System Design Manager, responsible for all technical aspects of HVDC projects. He is, at present, a Consulting Engineer within the business providing technical support across many activities. Carl is a Chartered Engineer, a member of the IET, a Senior Member of the IEEE, a Distinguished Member of CIGRE, and is an invited lecturer at a number of Universities.
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