wiredinUSA May 2013

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wiredInUSA - May 2013 29 EUROPE NEWS
What is believed to be the longest
superconductor installation in the world
has been announced by Nexans. Testing
has been completed on a 10kV HTS
system, part of the AmpaCity project.
The 1km long, three-phase, concentric
cable is designed to transport 40MW
and was produced at the company’s
superconductors plant at Huerth. It will
replace a 110kV copper cable in the
RWE-operated distribution network in the
city of Essen at the end of the year.
The combination of a superconductor
cable with a resistive superconducting
fault current limiter is also a first for the
industry. The device protects the grid
and the cable from overloading caused
by short circuit currents, and prevents
them from spreading to other network
parts.
“The superconductor cable being
laid in Essen city centre runs between
two transformer stations and is the first
to have a length of one kilometer. It
will facilitate a discernible increase
in the power density and efficiency
of the city centre power supply,” said
Dr Andreas Breuer, head of the new
technologies and projects division at
RWE Deutschland AG.
Christof Barklage, CEO of Nexans
Deutschland, added: “This project
could revolutionize the power networks.
We are happy to be among the
pioneers in this fascinating, trend-setting
technology.”
Superconductor in Essen
Expocenter fairground - Moscow