wiredInUSA May 2017

HTSC on trial

Auction successes

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.

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.

wiredInUSA - May 2017

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