Estlink

Last updated
Estlink 1
Estlink
Location of Estlink
Location
Country Estonia, Finland
General directionnorth–south
FromHarku converter station, Estonia 59°23′5″N24°33′37″E / 59.38472°N 24.56028°E / 59.38472; 24.56028 (Estlink - Harku Static Inverter Plant)
Passes through Gulf of Finland
To Espoo converter station, Finland 60°12′14″N24°33′06″E / 60.20389°N 24.55167°E / 60.20389; 24.55167 (Estlink - Espoo Static Inverter Plant)
Ownership information
Partners Elering
Fingrid
Construction information
Manufacturer of conductor/cable ABB
Installer of conductor/cable Global Marine Systems
Cable layer CS Sovereign
Manufacturer of substations ABB
Installer of substations ABB
Construction started2006
Commissioned2006
Technical information
Type Submarine power cable
Type of currentHVDC
Total length105 km (65 mi)
Power rating350 MW
AC voltage330 kV (Estonia), 400 kV (Finland)
DC voltage±150 kV
No. of poles2
Estlink 2
Estlink
Location of Estlink 2
Location
Country Estonia, Finland
General directionsouth–north–south
From Püssi converter station, Estonia 59°22′02″N27°03′50″E / 59.36722°N 27.06389°E / 59.36722; 27.06389 (Estlink 2 - Püssi Static Inverter Plant)
Passes through Gulf of Finland
ToAnttila converter station, Finland 60°22′36″N25°22′01″E / 60.37667°N 25.36694°E / 60.37667; 25.36694 (Estlink 2 - Anttila Static Inverter Plant)
Ownership information
Partners Elering
Fingrid
Construction information
Manufacturer of conductor/cable Nexans
Installer of conductor/cable Nexans
Cable layerC/S Nexans Skagerrak
Manufacturer of substations Siemens
Installer of substations Siemens
Contractors Empower Oy
Commissioned2014
Technical information
Typesubsea cable, overhead line
Type of currentHVDC
Total length171 km (106 mi)
Power rating650 MW
AC voltage330 kV (Estonia), 400 kV (Finland)
DC voltage450 kV
No. of poles1

Estlink is a set of HVDC submarine power cables between Estonia and Finland. Estlink 1 was the first interconnection between the Baltic and Nordic electricity markets followed by Estlink 2 in 2014. The main purpose of the Estlink connection is to secure power supply in both regions to integrate the Baltic and Nordic energy markets. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

History

First plans for a submarine power cable between the Baltic and the Nordic regions were proposed in 1990s. Negotiations between Eesti Energia, Pohjolan Voima, Helsingin Energia, Graninge (now E.ON Sverige), Latvenergo, Statkraft and TXE Nordic Energy, a subsidiary of TXU (now Energy Future Holdings Corporation) started In 1999, and on 9 October 2001 a contract was signed in Tallinn. [4] However, only after the harsh winter of 2002–2003 which resulted in an increased demand for power, the project of the submarine cable between Estonia and Finland got a boost. [5] [6] The letter of intention for underwater sea cable was signed between Eesti Energia, Pohjolan Voima, Helsingin Energia and Latvenergo on 31 March 2003. [7] In May 2004, the Lithuanian power company Lietuvos Energija agreed to participate in the project, shortly after which the project company AS Nordic Energy Link was established. [8] [9] On 29 April 2005, the Estlink project was launched. [6] [10] Construction of Harku converter station and land cable installation begins on 5 April 2006. [11] The submarine cable was laid in September 2006. [12] [13] [14] The Estlink cable was inaugurated on 4 December 2006 and it became fully operational on 5 January 2007. [15] [16]

The Estlink 1 cable was operated by AS Nordic Energy Link company, founded by Baltic and Finnish power companies. The main shareholder was Eesti Energia with 39.9% of the shares, Latvenergo and Lietuvos Energija had 25% each, and the remaining 10.1% was divided between Pohjolan Voima and Helsingin Energia (operating through their joint project company Finestlink). On 30 December 2013 the interconnector was sold to the transmission system operators Elering and Fingrid. [17]

Description

The 105 kilometres (65 mi) long (including 74 kilometres (46 mi) under water) +/-150 kV, 350 MW HVDC link cable is connected to the Estonian electrical system at the Harku 330 kV converter station and to the Finnish transmission network at Espoo 400 kV converter station in Järvikylä using HVDC Light transmission technology. [5] [18] [10] [19] The installation of land cable began on 4 May 2006 in Harku. The submarine cable was laid on the seabed of the Gulf of Finland in the autumn of 2006. The cable's maximum depth on the seabed is 100 metres (330 ft).

The cable was manufactured by ABB. [10] The submarine cable was laid by Global Marine Systems using the CS Sovereign . [6] The project cost €110 million. [12]

Sites

NameCoordinates
Estonia – Harku 59°23′5″N24°33′37″E / 59.38472°N 24.56028°E / 59.38472; 24.56028 (Estlink - Harku Static Inverter Plant)
Finland – Espoo 60°12′14″N24°33′06″E / 60.20389°N 24.55167°E / 60.20389; 24.55167 (Estlink - Espoo Static Inverter Plant)

History

A preliminary agreement on EstLink 2 was signed between Elering and Fingrid on 15 February 2010 in Tallinn. [20] [21] Capital investment decision by Fingrid was made on 20 May 2010. [22] A construction agreement was signed on 1 November 2010. [23]

On 23 December 2010, the contract to manufacture and install the subsea and underground cables was awarded to Nexans, the contract to build converter stations was awarded to Siemens, the contract to build the Nikuviken cable terminal station and to expand the Anttila substation in Finland was awarded to Empower Oy, and the contract to build the transmission line between Anttila and Nikuviken was awarded to ETDE, a part of Bouygues. [1] [2] [24] [25]

Laying of the cable started on 15 October 2012 and it is laid by the cable ship Nexans Skagerrak. [26] [27] The cable testing started on 22 October 2013. [28] A trial operation started on 6 December 2013 and continued until 6 February 2014 after which it started commercial operations. [29] [30] It was officially inaugurated on 6 March 2014. [31] [32]

The cable experienced an outage on 26 January 2024 originating from the Estonian coast. After repair work was concluded, the connection resumed commercial operation on 4 September 2024. [33]

Incident in December 2024

On 25 December 2024, an unplanned outage in Estlink 2 reduced the Estonia–Finland cross-border capacity from 1,016 MW to 358 MW. [34] Fingrid expects the outage to last until August 2025. [34] At the time of the outage, electricity was flowing from Finland to Estonia at a rate of 658 MW. Concerns about potential sabotage have arisen due to recent outages in the Baltic Sea region, although subsea cables are also prone to technical malfunctions and accidents. Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo confirmed that authorities were investigating the incident. [35]

At early evening, the Finnish Border Guard escorted the tanker Eagle S, a part of Russia's shadow fleet according to Lloyd's List, to Porkkalanniemi. By early morning on 26 December, both vessels were still near Porkkala.

A statement released by the European Commission described the Eagle S as part of Russia's shadow fleet. [36]

Description

The total length of Estlink 2 would be 171 kilometres (106 mi), including a 145-kilometre (90 mi) long offshore cable, a 12-kilometre (7.5 mi) long onshore cable in Estonia, and 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) of overhead lines in Finland. [1] The 12-kilometre (7.5 mi) long underground cable starts at the Püssi substation and runs the coast of the Gulf of Finland at Aseri. From there the 145-kilometre (90 mi) long offshore cable runs to the Nikuviken cable terminal station in Finland. The Nikuviken cable terminal station will be connected with the Attila converter station by the 14-kilometre (8.7 mi) long overhead line, which is installed on 63 pylons. [24]

Estlink 2 will be a classic bidirectional monopolar high-voltage direct current connection with line-commutated converter thyristors. Its maximum transmission rate will be 650 MW and it will operate with a voltage of 450 kV. [2] Its estimated cost is about €320 million, of which converter stations cost €100 million and cable €180 million. [1] [24] The European Commission has decided to allocate €100 million to the project. [37] [38]

Sites

NameCoordinates
Estonia – Püssi Static Inverter Plant 59°22′13″N27°04′05″E / 59.37028°N 27.06806°E / 59.37028; 27.06806 (Estlink 2 - Püssi Static Inverter Plant)
Finland – Nikuviken Cable Terminal 60°17′34″N25°31′41″E / 60.29278°N 25.52806°E / 60.29278; 25.52806 (Estlink 2 - Nikuviken Cable Terminal)
Finland – Anttila Static Inverter Plant 60°22′36″N25°22′01″E / 60.37667°N 25.36694°E / 60.37667; 25.36694 (Estlink 2 - Anttila Static Inverter Plant)

Waypoints of overhead line in Finland

List of waypoints

On June 28, 2022, Elering and Fingrid signed a memorandum of understanding to begin planning for a third submarine cable, EstLink3, with a capacity of up to 1000 MW, expected to be completed by 2035. [39] [40]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">High-voltage direct current</span> Electric power transmission system

A high-voltage direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system uses direct current (DC) for electric power transmission, in contrast with the more common alternating current (AC) transmission systems. Most HVDC links use voltages between 100 kV and 800 kV.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baltic Cable</span> HVDC power line between Sweden and Germany

The Baltic Cable is a monopolar HVDC power line running beneath the Baltic Sea that interconnects the electric power grids of Germany and Sweden. Its maximum transmission power is 600 megawatts (MW).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skagerrak (power transmission system)</span> Four submarine HVDC power line between Denmark and Norway

Skagerrak is the name of a 1,700 MW high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission facility between Tjele (Denmark) and Kristiansand (Norway). It is owned and operated by Statnett in Norway, and Energinet in Denmark. The lines connect the hydroelectric-based Norwegian grid and the wind and thermal power-based Danish grid. In operation it enables more renewable energy in the energy mix, and more efficient use of electricity.

Baltic states synchronization with UCTE is an international electricity transmission infrastructure project to synchronize the three Baltic states with the Synchronous grid of Continental Europe (UCTE), managed by ENTSO-E, and leave the IPS/UPS transmission system managed by the BRELL agreement. The project is expected to be completed by February 2025.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fenno–Skan</span> Swedish-Finnish high voltage direct current transmission

Fenno–Skan is the designation of the high voltage direct current transmission between Dannebo in Sweden and Rauma in Finland.

NorNed is a 580-kilometre (360 mi) long high-voltage direct current submarine power cable between Feda, Norway and the seaport of Eemshaven in the Netherlands, which interconnects both countries' electrical grids. It was once the longest submarine power cable in the world. Budgeted at €550 million, and completed at a cost of €600m, the NorNed cable is a bipolar HVDC link with a voltage of ±450 kV and a capacity of 700 MW. NorNed is a joint project of the Norwegian transmission system operator Statnett and its Dutch counterpart TenneT. The cable system itself and the two converter stations were produced by ABB.

The HVDC Russia–Finland was a project to build a HVDC submarine power cable between Kernovo, Leningrad Oblast (Russia) and Mussalo, Kotka (Finland). The main purpose of this project was to export Russian nuclear energy to Sweden and Finland.

NordBalt is a submarine power cable between Klaipėda in Lithuania and Nybro in Sweden, operating since 2015. The purpose of the cable is to facilitate the trading of power between the Baltic and Nordic electricity markets, and to increase the supply and energy security in both markets.

Balticconnector is a bi-directional natural gas pipeline between Ingå, Finland and Paldiski, Estonia operated by Gasgrid Finland and Elering. It connects the Estonian and Finnish gas grids, and provides Finland with access to the Inčukalns underground gas storage facility in Latvia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eesti Energia</span> Company based in Estonia

Eesti Energia AS is a public limited energy company in Estonia with its headquarters in Tallinn. It is the world's biggest oil shale to energy company. The company was founded in 1939. As of 2014, it operates in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Jordan and Utah, United States. In Estonia, the company operates under the name Eesti Energia, while using the brand name Enefit for international operations. The main raw material for energy production – oil shale – is extracted from mines located in Eastern-Estonia and owned by the company. The group of Eesti Energia has three main operation areas: electricity generation, shale oil production, and sale and distribution of electricity. Its shares are owned by the Government of Estonia.

The Vyborg HVDC scheme is a system of electricity transmission from the Russian power system to Finland, using high-voltage direct current. It consists of four 355 MVA (250 MW) back-to-back converter blocks, the first three of which were completed in the early 1980s and the last in January 2001. Much of the original converter equipment has been refurbished or modernised.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nord Pool</span> Pan-European electric power exchange

Nord Pool AS is a pan-European power exchange. Nord Pool has its main office in Oslo and further offices in Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallinn and London. The company is owned by the European exchange operator Euronext as well as TSO Holding, which represents the continental Nordic and Baltic countries' transmission system operators. Nord Pool has two subsidiaries, Nord Pool AB and Nord Pool Finland Oy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elering</span> Company based in Estonia

Elering AS is a national transmission system operator for electricity and natural gas with headquarters in Tallinn, Estonia. The managing director of Elering is Taavi Veskimägi.

The electricity sector in Finland relies on nuclear power, renewable energy, cogeneration and electricity import from neighboring countries. Finland has the highest per-capita electricity consumption in the EU. Co-generation of heat and electricity for industry process heat and district heating is common. Finland is one of the last countries in the world still burning peat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Sea Link</span> Subsea electricity transmission line

The North Sea Link is a 1,400 MW high-voltage direct current submarine power cable between Norway and the United Kingdom.

The Kiisa Power Plant is an emergency reserve power plant, based on the engine power plant technology, located in Kiisa, Estonia, about 25 kilometres (16 mi) from Tallinn. As an emergency plant, it operates only in the case of a network failure or capacity shortfall, and it does not participate in the everyday electricity market. The power plant is owned and operated by the Estonian transmission system operator Elering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Synchronous grid of Northern Europe</span>

The Nordic regional group of ENTSO-E is a synchronous electrical grid composed of the electricity grids of Norway, Sweden, Finland and the eastern part of electricity sector in Denmark. The grid is not synchronized with the synchronous grid of Continental Europe, but has a number of non-synchronous DC connections with that as well as other synchronous grids. Gotland is not synchronized with the Swedish mainland either, as it is connected by HVDC.

Baltic states synchronization with UCTE is an international electricity transmission infrastructure project to synchronize the three Baltic states with the Synchronous grid of Continental Europe (UCTE), managed by ENTSO-E, and leave the IPS/UPS transmission system managed by the BRELL agreement. The project is expected to be completed by February 2025.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 Estlink 2 incident</span> Failure of Estlink 2 cable

On 25 December 2024 at 12:26 EET, the Estlink 2 submarine power cable had an unplanned failure, reducing the Estonia–Finland cross-border capacity from 1,016 to 358 MW. Concerns about potential sabotage immediately arose due to the recent outages in the Baltic Sea region.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Siemens secures EUR100m order to supply converter stations for Estlink 2". Power-Gen Worldwide . PennWell. 2010-12-23. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
  2. 1 2 3 "Nexans Wins Contract for EstLink 2 Power Submarine Link Between Finland and Estonia" . OilVoice. 2010-12-26. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
  3. ↑ "Estlink-2 to tie Baltic power producers closer to the Nordic markets". Nordic Investment Bank. December 2010. Archived from the original on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
  4. ↑ Kurm, Kairi; Gunter, Aleksei (2001-10-11). "New power cable to unite Baltic and Scandinavian power supplies". The Baltic Times . Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  5. 1 2 Pajo, Raine; Aarna, Indrek; Lahtinen, Matti (2007-04-01). "Estlink Tie Improves Baltic States System" . Transmission & Distribution World. Penton Media, Inc. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  6. 1 2 3 "Case Studies - Estlink". Global Marine Systems. Archived from the original on 2014-10-10. Retrieved 2014-10-19.
  7. ↑ Hõbemägi, Toomas (2003-03-31). "Estonia- Latvia- Finland power groups sign undersea cable protocol". Baltic Business News. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  8. ↑ Hõbemägi, Toomas (2004-05-13). "Lietuvos Energija agrees to invest in Estlink". Baltic Business News. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  9. ↑ "Sea cable Estlink partners formed joint venture". Baltic Business News. 2004-06-07. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  10. 1 2 3 Hõbemägi, Toomas (2005-05-02). "Estonian-Finnish undersea power cable project launched". Baltic Business News. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  11. ↑ Hõbemägi, Toomas (2006-04-05). "Construction work for Estlink submarine cable converter station begins". Baltic Business News. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  12. 1 2 "Work on Estlink cable begins in Gulf of Finland". New Europe. 2006-09-13. Archived from the original on 2007-10-16. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  13. ↑ Hõbemägi, Toomas (2006-09-11). "Laying of Estlink submarine cable on seabed begins near Tallinn". Baltic Business News. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  14. ↑ Hõbemägi, Toomas (2006-09-29). "Laying of Estlink cable on the seabed is completed". Baltic Business News. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  15. ↑ Hõbemägi, Toomas (2006-12-24). "EUR 110 mln power link between Baltics and Finland inaugurated today". Baltic Business News. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  16. ↑ Hõbemägi, Toomas (2007-01-05). "Estlink subsea cable between Estonia and Finland becomes operational". Baltic Business News. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  17. ↑ "Estlink gets new owners". The Baltic Times . 2014-01-08. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  18. ↑ "Finland-Estonia power cable at least a week late". Reuters. 2006-11-30. Archived from the original on February 1, 2013. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
  19. ↑ "Estlink HVDC Light link". ABB . Retrieved 2010-10-02.
  20. ↑ "Preliminary agreement signed on EstLink 2 cable connection" (Press release). Nord Pool Spot. 2010-02-15. Archived from the original on 2011-07-14. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
  21. ↑ "Power firms sign new Finland-Estonia link deal". Reuters . 2010-02-15. Archived from the original on February 21, 2010. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
  22. ↑ "Fingrid's capital investment decision on submarine cable link to Estonia" (Press release). Nord Pool Spot. 2010-05-20. Archived from the original on 2011-07-14. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
  23. ↑ "Electricity market expanding further to the Baltic countries" (Press release). Fingrid. 2010-11-01. Archived from the original on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
  24. 1 2 3 "Contractors chosen for new submarine cable connection between Finland and Estonia:total value of contracts almost 300 million euros" (Press release). Fingrid. 2010-12-23. Archived from the original on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
  25. ↑ Kinnunen, Terhi (2010-12-23). "Nexans Norway, Siemens win Estlink 2 contracts". Reuters . Archived from the original on February 1, 2013. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
  26. ↑ "EstLink 2 Submarine Cable Laying between Finland and Estonia Starts". Subsea World News. 2012-10-15. Retrieved 2012-10-15.
  27. ↑ "Laying of EstLink 2 submarine cable has been started" (Press release). Elering. 2012-10-15. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  28. ↑ "Testing of EstLink 2 Started on October 22nd" (Press release). Elering. 2013-10-22. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  29. ↑ "EstLink 2 commissioning tests ran smoothly" (Press release). Fingrid. 2013-10-22. Archived from the original on 2014-01-12. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  30. ↑ "Power Cable EstLink 2 Enters Service". ERR. 2014-02-10. Retrieved 2014-03-08.
  31. ↑ "Estlink 2 to Open, Tripling Power Flow Across Gulf". ERR. 2014-03-06. Retrieved 2014-03-08.
  32. ↑ "EstLink 2 officially inaugurated". ERR. 2014-03-07. Retrieved 2014-03-08.
  33. ↑ "The EstLink 2 electricity interconnector between Finland and Estonia returns to commercial operation". Fingrid. 3 September 2024. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  34. 1 2 "Unavailability of electricity facilities : Transmission". Nord Pool — UMM Platform. Fingrid Oyj. 2024-12-26. Retrieved 2024-12-26.
  35. ↑ "Finland investigates outage of undersea power link to Estonia, Finnish PM says". Reuters. December 25, 2024.
  36. ↑ "Estonia navy to protect undersea power link after main cable damaged". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2024-12-28.
  37. ↑ "European Commission endorses Estlink 2 investment". Estonia.eu. Baltic News Service. 2010-07-12. Archived from the original on 2010-07-16. Retrieved 2010-10-02.
  38. ↑ "Economic Recovery: Second batch of 4-billion-euro package goes to 43 pipeline and electricity projects". European Commission. 2010-03-04. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
  39. ↑ Rapacka, Patrycja (2022-06-28). "Elering and Fingrid begin planning for EstLink 3 submarine cable" . Retrieved 2022-07-27.
  40. ↑ "Elering ja Fingrid käivitavad ühistegevused EstLink 3 rajamiseks - Elering". elering.ee (in Estonian). 2022-06-28. Retrieved 2022-07-27.
Map all coordinates using OpenStreetMap

Download coordinates as:

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.