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TenneT is planning a trial run of underground
superconducting high voltage cable in the
Dutch electricity grid. The project will be a
first, as a section of superconducting cable
of this length (between 2km and 4km) has
not yet been installed anywhere else in the
world.
The 150kV cables currently in use require
a right of way of at least 12m wide to
dissipate the generated heat. HTSC (high
temperature superconducting) cables
require only a 3m strip because they
generate no heat, and no magnetic field.
Working with several leading institutes on
the project —Delft University of Technology,
University of Twente, the Institute for Science
and Sustainable Development, HAN
University of Applied Sciences, and Imtech
Marine – TenneT has yet to find a suitable
location for the test run.
Superconducting cables are expensive,
costing approximately three times as much
as a standard 110kV or 150kV cable, and
initially it will only be possible to use them in
sections of up to 4km. The superconducting
state in high temperature superconducting
cables is achieved by refrigeration to
-200°C using liquid nitrogen and this limits
the cable length.
In the first of two German auction rounds,
DONG Energy has won the right to build
three offshore wind projects in the German
North Sea. DONG Energy submitted six
projects in the bid and won with OWP West
(240MW), Borkum Riffgrund West 2 (240MW)
and Gode Wind 3 (110MW). The three
projects are planned to be commissioned
in 2024.
For two of the projects – OWP West and
Borkum Riffgrund West 2 – DONG Energy
made bids at €0 per MWh, meaning that
these projects will not receive a subsidy on
top of the wholesale electricity price. The
Gode Wind 3 project was awarded based
on a bid price of €60 per MWh.
HTSC on trial
Auction successes
wiredInUSA - May 2017
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