NKT joins SuperLink superconducting power cable project

NKT has joined a consortium to develop the world’s longest superconducting power cable, called SuperLink, for the city of Munich. The project, first announced in 2019, will create a 12-km underground superconducting power link that supports Munich’s growing energy demand. Learn more about NKT’s cable technologies at NKT.

SuperLink project partners and goals

Local utility Stadtwerke München Infrastruktur (SWM Infrastruktur) has now started the first development phase of SuperLink. The consortium brings together Linde plc, THEVA, the South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences, and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, alongside NKT and SWM. Together, these partners aim to show how superconducting power cables can deliver high-capacity, space-saving grid solutions for large cities.

Supporting Munich’s energy transition

NKT Chief Technology Officer Anders Jensen notes that NKT plays an active role from the early stages of SuperLink. He explains that Stadtwerke München and its infrastructure arm are taking a significant step toward using superconducting power cables to support Germany’s Energiewende and the wider shift to renewable energy. As a result, NKT sees superconducting power cables as a key technology to secure optimized access to clean energy in dense urban areas such as Munich.

Technical design and performance of SuperLink

The superconducting power cable design remains extremely compact when compared to conventional cable technology. Therefore, it delivers a very high power-to-size ratio that suits constrained city infrastructure. SuperLink will operate at a power rating of 500 MW and a voltage level of 110 kV. It will run between two substations in Munich, and it will use existing ducts to keep construction work to a minimum.

Cooling and system reliability

The superconducting cable will run at minus 200ºC in a closed cooling circuit that uses environmentally harmless nitrogen as the refrigerant. In addition, the system will include a redundant back-up cooling system to ensure reliable and continuous operation.

Munich as a live testbed for superconducting grids

With around 1.5 million residents, Munich offers an ideal real-world testbed to develop and live-test superconducting power cables. By integrating a 500 MW superconducting link into the urban grid, SuperLink aims to show how this technology can expand power grids in dense cities. At the same time, it will support large-scale renewable energy integration.

Author: WJI staff and wire services