high-voltage direct current
A high-voltage direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system (also called a power superhighway or an electrical superhighway) uses direct current (DC) for electric power transmission, in contrast with the more common alternating curre ...
power transmission
Power transmission is the movement of energy from its place of generation to a location where it is applied to perform useful work.
Power is defined formally as units of energy per unit time. In SI units:
:\text = \frac = \frac
Since the deve ...
system that connects
Sardinia
Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label= Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label= Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, af ...
Tyrrhenian Sea
The Tyrrhenian Sea (; it, Mar Tirreno , french: Mer Tyrrhénienne , sc, Mare Tirrenu, co, Mari Tirrenu, scn, Mari Tirrenu, nap, Mare Tirreno) is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenian pe ...
Terna Terna may refer to:
Places
* Terňa, a village in the Prešov Region of Slovakia
* Terna River, Latur District, Maharashtra, India
Religion
* A terna is a list of three candidates for the office of bishop used in the episcopal selection process o ...
.
History
The project was launched in 2006. Scientific surveys and studies of the sea floor began soon after. The first submarine cable as also onshore cables was laid in 2008 and the first voltage tests were conducted. In 2009, the converter stations in Latina and Fiume Santo entered into operation. Laying of the second submarine cable was scheduled for the end of 2010. The submarine cable-laying activity was being carried out by the ''Giulio Verne'', the largest cable-laying ship in the world. The cable was inaugurated on 17 March 2011.
Description
The system consists of a
submarine cable Submarine cable is any electrical cable that is laid on the seabed, although the term is often extended to encompass cables laid on the bottom of large freshwater bodies of water.
Examples include:
*Submarine communications cable
*Submarine power ...
and land cables. It has two poles, having a total capacity of 1,000 MW at 500 kV of voltage. The diameter of the submarine cable is . It is connected to the alternating current grids through
converter station
An HVDC converter station (or simply converter station) is a specialised type of substation which forms the terminal equipment for a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line.Arrillaga, Jos; High Voltage Direct Current Transmission, se ...
s in Fiume Santo and Latina at 400 kV of voltage. The substation in Latina extends over a surface area of , the one in Fiume Santo of . The cable was manufactured by
Prysmian
Prysmian S.p.A. is an Italian company with headquarters in Milan, specialising in the production of electrical cable for use in the energy and telecom sectors and for optical fibres. Prysmian is present in North America with 23 plants, 48 in Eur ...
and converter stations were manufactured by ABB. The project cost over €730 million.
See also
* SACOI, the old HVDC link between Sardinia across Corsica to the Italian mainland.