Utility Company Vattenfall Anticipates That Pilot Project at the Boxberg Brown
Coal Plant Will Help to Increase Personnel and Plant Safety While Simultaneously
Reducing Investment Costs
PARIS--(Business Wire)--
Regulatory News:
Nexans (Paris:NEX), the worldwide leader in the cable industry, has just
commissioned the world`s first Superconducting Fault Current Limiter (SFCL) that
is installed in a power plant. In this pilot project for Vattenfall Europe
Generation AG, the SFCL will provide short-circuit protection for the internal
medium voltage power supply that feeds coal mills and crushers in the Boxberg
brown coal power plant in Saxony, Germany.
Thanks to their almost instantaneous response to fault currents, SFCLs prevent
the damaging overloading of switchgear and other power network components that
can occur during short-circuits. Vattenfall´s experts anticipate that this
innovative technology will offer significant benefits in personnel and plant
safety and they are keen to gain practical experience on SFCL in collaboration
with Nexans.
"When short-circuits occur, a SFCL can limit the current so quickly and
effectively that the risk is significantly reduced," states Dr. Thomas Krüger,
project manager at Vattenfall. "It could also help cut costs significantly by
reducing the need to oversize substation equipment and cables to withstand even
the most extreme short-circuit currents. That`s why power plant operators have
taken such a strong interest in SFCL technology, since they both improve safety
and cut overall investment costs".
"This is the second complete SFCL system that Nexans has supplied, and the first
time that this type of device has ever been used in a power plant, which is a
highly challenging environment from a technological point of view," says Dr.
Joachim Bock, CEO of Nexans SuperConductors. "It is particularly important for
us that the systems are being implemented without public grants, which is also
unprecedented on the world stage".
Live testing of the SFCL in a 12 kV power supply
Vattenfall`s SFCL, based on Nexans´ HTS (high temperature superconductor)
technology and designed for a rated current of 800 A, is undergoing live testing
by daily routine operation in a feeder bar of the 12 kV power supply for rebound
hammer mills (used for crushing coal).
For the SFCL used in Boxberg, Nexans SuperConductors designed and built the
device according to the specifications from Vattenfall and the Brandenburg
Technical University in Cottbus (Germany), which is providing scientific support
for this project. The device can limit a 63 kA prospective short circuit current
to less than 30 kA and to about 7 kA after 10 milliseconds.
About Vattenfall
Vattenfall is Europe`s fifth largest generator of electricity and the largest
producer of heat. Consolidated sales in 2007 amounted to Euros 13,000 million.
Vattenfall`s vision is to be a leading European energy company, and the main
products are electricity and heat. Vattenfall operates in all parts of the
electricity value chain: generation, transmission, distribution and sales.
Vattenfall also generates, distributes and sells heat, and conducts energy
trading and lignite mining. Operations today are conducted in Sweden, Denmark,
Finland, Germany and Poland. The Group has slightly more than 32,000 employees,
and the Parent Company, Vattenfall AB, is 100%-owned by the Swedish state. More
information on www.vattenfall.com
About Nexans
With energy as the basis of its development, Nexans, the worldwide leader in the
cable industry, offers an extensive range of cables and cabling systems. The
Group is a global player in the infrastructure, industry, building and Local
Area Network markets. Nexans addresses a series of market segments from energy,
transport and telecom networks to shipbuilding, oil and gas, nuclear power,
automotive, electronics, aeronautics, handling and automation. With an
industrial presence in 39 countries and commercial activities worldwide, Nexans
employs 22,400 people and had sales in 2008 of 6.8 billion euros. Nexans is
listed on NYSE Euronext Paris, compartment A. More information on
www.nexans.com.
Press
Céline Révillon
Tel.: +33 (0)1 73 23 84 12
Celine.revillon@nexans.com
or
Investor Relations
Michel Gédéon
Tel.: +33 (0)1 73 23 85 31
Michel.gedeon@nexans.com
Copyright Business Wire 2009
