The heavy cables run underground and over hundreds of kilometers across the entire country. In the future, they will bring green electricity to southern Germany. An overview of a complex energy project.
It is a huge infrastructure project and is intended to advance the energy transition: The Suedlink electricity highway is intended to transport green electricity from the north to the south of Germany. Construction is now beginning in Baden-Württemberg on another approximately 80 kilometer long section of the route. According to the transmission system operator TransnetBW, the Federal Network Agency gave the green light in mid-September.
Construction has already begun in other places in Germany. What exactly is planned at Suedlink? And what does that mean for electricity customers? The most important questions and answers at a glance:
What is Suedlink?
Suedlink is one of several planned electricity highways in Germany. The route will ultimately be around 700 kilometers long and supply ten million households with green electricity. Two power lines are to be laid next to each other over a large part of the route and operated in parallel. According to the responsible transmission system operators Tennet and TransnetBW, the costs amount to around ten billion euros.
Where does the new power line run?
The power line runs through six federal states: from Schleswig-Holstein via Lower Saxony, Hesse and Thuringia to Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. One of the lines starts in Brunsbüttel and ends in Leingarten in Baden-Württemberg, the other connection runs from Wilster to Bergrheinfeld in Lower Franconia. A separate Elbe tunnel is even being built near Glückstadt near Hamburg, and another section is being laid 200 meters underground in a salt mine near Heilbronn.
Why is it being built at all?
Suedlink aims to bring electricity to where it is needed: from the windy north to the south of Germany. The corridor ends in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg – two federal states that are increasingly dependent on wind power from northern Germany after the shutdown of nuclear power plants and the phase-out of coal. The new route is intended to ensure a stable power supply.
When should Suedlink go into operation?
Construction has been delayed several times in recent years. The north-south route was originally scheduled to be completed in 2022. Initially the date was delayed to 2026. Commissioning is now planned for the end of 2028. Tennet is responsible for planning and construction in the north of the country, while TransnetBW is responsible for central and southern Germany.
Why does construction take so long?
According to the company, the reason for the delays was, among other things, lengthy planning and approval procedures. The power cables run through properties and fields, for example. The construction work is also complex: in order to lay the cables underground, some construction has to be done under rivers, highways and infrastructure. Another challenge: One meter of cable weighs around 42 kilograms. Not all roads are designed for such weight and sometimes need to be reinforced.
What advantages and disadvantages does Suedlink have?
When laying underground cables, there is generally less interference with the landscape than with electricity pylons. Suedlink will also transport direct current. Less energy is lost than when transporting alternating current. Converters at the end points of the power line convert direct current into alternating current. However, both laying underground cables and using direct current cables are the more expensive options.
Will the price of electricity for consumers now rise?
It is unclear what the future commissioning of Suedlink will mean for electricity prices. What is certain is that the costs of the project will be passed on to network fees over decades and thus end up with consumers. At the same time, the new route is intended to prevent bottlenecks in the electricity supply – which saves money. In the best case scenario, no additional electricity needs to be purchased nor additional power plants need to be started up. Fewer bottlenecks put less strain on your wallet.
Is there also criticism?
In the past, citizens’ initiatives and action alliances had repeatedly expressed concerns about the megaproject and threatened to sue. Among other things, they feared negative impacts on agriculture and the environment. There was also sharp criticism from the Bavarian state government. Energy experts believe that expanding the power grid is also necessary as part of the energy transition.
Source: Stern
