wiredInUSA September 2020

Turnkey DC contract

NordLink passes its latest test

Image courtesy of NKT Image courtesy of TenneT NKT has been awarded a turnkey contract

by TenneT to deliver and install a high voltage direct current XLPE power cable system for the BorWin5 project in Northern Germany. The order comprises the manufacturing of around 230km of 320kV high voltage DC onshore and offshore power cables and accessories, as well as offshore installation by the cable-laying vessel NKT Victoria. Production of the power cables will start in late 2021, with project commissioning scheduled for 2025. BorWin5 is TenneT’s fourth offshore wind DC project off the coast of Borkum in north- western Germany.

A voltage test of the NordLink land cable between Germany and Norway has confirmed that the system is almost ready for operation. The next step is to fit the final transition joints between land cable and subsea cable. The consortium behind NordLink includes utilities Statnett and TenneT, and German investment bank KfW. Covering a total of 623km, the HVDC NordLink interconnector will connect the Norwegian and German electricity markets for the first time, boosting energy security in both countries. It will enable the exchange of 1,400MW of renewable energy — wind power from Germany and hydropower from Norway. The cable lands at two converter stations, in Wilster, Schleswig-Holstein/Germany, and Tonstad in Norway. At these sites, the electricity is converted from direct (DC) to alternating current (AC) – or vice versa, depending on the direction of transmission – and fed into the German or Norwegian transmission grid.

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wiredInUSA September 2020