ALEGrO

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Converter hall in Oberzier

ALEGrO is a high-voltage direct current transmission line (HVDC) between Oberzier in the district of Düren , North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany and Lixhe in the province of Liège in Belgium . The acronym stands for A achen L üttich E lectricity Gr id O verlay . As line construction project no. 30, ALEGrO is part of the 2013 federal requirements plan .

General

Map of the BBPlG projects (as of 2013). The ALEGrO project bears project number 30.

Until the ALEGrO was built, there was no direct electricity connection between Germany and Belgium. ALEGrO is therefore the first high-voltage line between Germany and Belgium ( interconnector ) and thus contributes to the integration of the European energy market. The background to the project is the increasing importance of weather-dependent renewable energy sources such as solar energy and wind energy on European energy markets: the integration of interregional energy networks enables mutual relief in the event of bottlenecks. The HVDC line was designed as an underground cable over its entire length of 90 km . In German territory, the length between Oberzier and the German-Belgian border at Lichtenbusch is around 40 km. On the German side, the line runs largely along the A4 and A44 motorways . The end point on the Belgian side is Lixhe, a district of Visé near the Belgian-Dutch border.

A large part of the line could be laid using the open construction method. However, a closed construction method was necessary in a total of 32 places, for example to cross roads, gas pipes or water. The longest tunnel is about 2.8 km long and runs up to 12 m underground.

Converters that convert direct current into alternating current have been installed at both end points of the transmission line. The converters equipped with IGBTs are housed in the Oberzier substation and the Lixhe substation. The transmission capacity is 1000 megawatts with an operating voltage of around 320 kV .

The underground cable connection was planned and built by the German transmission system operator Amprion in cooperation with the Belgian transmission system operator Elia System Operator . The cost of the project should be around 550 million euros.

history

On May 11, 2017, Amprion applied to the Cologne District Government to carry out the planning approval procedure in accordance with the Energy Industry Act . The planning approval decision authorizing the construction and operation of the 320 kV HVDC link was issued on October 17, 2018.

Construction for ALEGrO began in October 2018. Archaeological investigations and ordnance clearance had already taken place along the planned route beforehand .

The converter hall was built in the Oberzier substation in 2019. The construction work on the Belgian side was completed in 2019 based on an earlier permit. On the German side, construction work continued until autumn 2020. Commissioning of the HVDC line began in October 2020. On November 9, 2020, ALEGrO was officially inaugurated by Prime Minister Armin Laschet together with Belgian Energy Minister Tinne Van der Straeten in the Aachen City Council . Commercial operation of the cable is scheduled to begin in mid-November 2020.

See also

  • NordLink and NorGer , HVDC under construction between Germany and Norway
  • NorNed , HVDC between Norway and the Netherlands

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Alegro: the first powerBridge to Belgium. In: Amprion.net. September 2014, accessed on November 18, 2020 .
  2. ↑ Industry Projects, Technology | Nov 9, 2020 | Power, Power Technology, Renewable: Siemens Energy supplies HVDC technology for electricity link. In: Industry Projects & Technology. November 9, 2020, accessed on November 10, 2020 .
  3. ↑ a b Carsten Rose: A tunnel is being built in Röhe for the “Alegro” power line. In: Aachener Nachrichten. May 7, 2019, accessed December 22, 2019 .
  4. ↑ Plan approval decision ALEGrO. (PDF) District government Cologne , October 17, 2018, accessed on July 12, 2020 .
  5. ^ Groundbreaking ceremony for the first river bridge to Belgium . In: Renewable Energies. Das Magazin , October 30, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2018.
  6. ^ Eschweiler: First direct electricity connection to Belgium. In: Aachener Nachrichten. August 22, 2018, accessed December 22, 2019 .
  7. ↑ German-Belgian Alegro power link on track for November start | S&P Global Platts. October 29, 2020, accessed on November 6, 2020 .