• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

17/18TENNET TODAY 1 TenneT Today Powering society for 20 years Electricity at your fi ngertips, 24/7 Delivering power over land and sea Let there be LIGHT WE ARE TENNET Can you imagine a world without light available at the flick of a switch? Or one without power available at your fingertips, whenever and however you need it? These are the things we take for granted in our modern, always-on society. But few of us stop to think of the work required to keep the electricity flowing, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It’s a massive responsibility that we at TenneT are proud to shoulder. We operate the electricity grid for the Netherlands and large parts of Germany, carrying power from where it is made – including wind, solar and biomass, as well as fossil and nuclear fuels – to 41 million people. As renewable energy becomes more mainstream, we need to carry electricity over longer distances – from wind farms far out at sea, or solar panels on people’s homes. We carry it across borders, over ground, underground and under the sea, providing the power on which we all depend. Many people have never heard of us. That’s fine. We’d rather be the power behind the scenes, keeping the lights on, no matter how much the wind blows or the sun shines. But if you do want to know a little more about us, read on. We are TenneT – welcome to our world. TENNET TODAY 3 Let there be 41mln people connected in LIGHT the Netherlands and Germany “ HOW DO We pride ourselves on the reliability of our grid, WE STAY with power available 99.99% PLUGGED IN?” of the time. AT A GLANCE 2 017 Getting electricity to wherever you need it is a complex business. Here’s a quick summary of the many things we depend on to do our work. Grid availability SECURE SUPPLY We work tirelessly to avoid power outages, by investing in and 99.9986% maintaining our grid. Stakeholder meetings (public events) 756 22,573 km High-voltage lines. Grid area: The Netherlands and a large part of Germany. STAKEHOLDER Long enough to reach more than half way around the world. MEETINGS Interconnectors 13 A recent survey showed that our reputation is good to very good. Investments in 2017 (EUR million) 1,770 OUR REPUTATION Gas Number of employees Biomass Coal 3,187 Energy mix Solar Nuclear Water Wind 10 years ago we 10 YEARS started connecting OFFSHORE offshore wind farms to the onshore grid. WHAT DO WE DO? MAINTAIN TRANSPORT CONNECT TENNET TODAY 7 We keep We bring the We connect the power on power to you across borders A key part of our job is to We ensure that electricity Electricity knows no borders, maintain a safe and secure is delivered from its various and we believe north-west Europe balance between the supply sources to you, the user. We is better served by an integrated and demand of electricity, do this across thousands of electricity market. Therefore, making sure that power is kilometres of high-voltage grid we connect our electricity grid at your fingertips, whenever and infrastructure, which we with the countries around us. you need it. maintain and expand to keep This way we can establish a the power flowing as efficiently single market that guarantees and safely as possible. a reliable electricity supply at a fair price. At TenneT we have a clear and critical task: to keep the lights on for 41 million people across the Netherlands and Germany, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. This is what we call ‘security of supply’ and it is at the heart of our business. In our busy modern lives, we depend on electricity in almost everything we do. From using a computer or smartphone, to watching TV, cooking, or buying our groceries, electricity literally powers our lives. Making sure this power reaches users reliably and safely underpins everything we do. It’s no easy task, requiring us to deliver electricity across 22,573 kilometres of high-voltage cables, above and below the ground, across land and sea. As we use more and more renewable energy, the challenges of maintaining this secure supply increase. After all, the wind doesn’t always blow and the sun doesn’t always shine. Keeping you PLUGGED IN So, for us, security of supply isn’t simply a question of building more lines or laying more cables. It’s about integrating all of these different types of energy into the system, while ensuring that we continue to serve society 24/7. Although very occasional outages can occur, we are proud to be one of the most reliable grid operators, keeping the power on for 99.99% of the time. To keep this up, we need to invest more in the maintenance and expansion of our grid, while devising increasingly ingenious ways to bring power to our consumers, with minimum disturbance to the environment and local communities. TENNET TODAY 9 Powering the Randstad megalopolis The Randstad region in central-western Netherlands includes the four largest Dutch cities, the Port of Rotterdam and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. Keeping electricity reliably and safely supplied to this densely populated and economically important area is critical. In 2017, we strengthened our ability to do this with the launch of the Randstad 380 kV high-voltage connection, and in the future this will also play an important role in linking offshore wind farms into the onshore grid. Carrying wind power from north to south in Germany In Germany, we have started work on a new 380 kV connection between Audorf/Sud and Hamburg/Nord, running for 69 km. This will be an essential artery for carrying wind energy generated in the north of Germany to consumers in the south of the country. Connections like this are becoming essential in Germany as we work to carry wind-generated electricity over long distances from offshore wind farms to onshore end-users. What is the grid? HOW WE TRANSMIT ELECTRICITY The high-voltage grid is the backbone of the electricity Power plants supply system. It is used for the transport of large quantities of electricity over relatively long distances, mostly via Renewables In-feed High-voltage grid high-voltage lines above the ground. Electricity generated at sea is transported via subsea cables and then connected Import to the high-voltage grid. Sources of electricity Our high-voltage grid Managing the grid The electricity flowing through Because wind farms and power The government entrusts us our grid is generated from both plants are often far away from with building and managing the conventional and renewable where electricity is used, we need high-voltage electricity system. fast-growing energy sources, to carry it over large distances To do this, we work with many including energy from wind, solar without major losses on the way. stakeholders: politicians, and biomass. The offshore wind This is why we transport electricity municipalities, communities, power is transported to the shore at 110,000 volts and higher: NGOs, regulators, regional via subsea cables, where it is fed up to 1,700 times higher than operators and many more. into the transmission grid. the electricity from your socket. TENNET TODAY 11 Large industries Consumer/ High-voltage grid Transmission/ distribution prosumer Export TenneT “ WHAT DO We expect to invest around EUR 28 billion YOU INVEST over the next 10 years TO MAINTAIN in offshore and onshore THE GRID?” grid infrastructure. Providing a sustainable and secure supply of electricity to society is about more than volts, power lines and turbines. It’s also about talking, listening and doing the right thing. ENGAGINGwith STAKEHOLDERS When we enable power to be delivered to how they need it. So, there is a balance your home, there is a significant amount of to achieve. A discussion to be had. technology and infrastructure that needs to be in place, built over land and sea. That’s why an open and honest dialogue As we do this, we are fulfilling our most with our stakeholders is so important. important duty – to power society – but From the outset of any project, we engage we must also do this responsibly. with everyone affected, listening to their questions and needs. We make all the Whenever we plan new infrastructure, information everyone needs easily available, we are aware of the consequences for take concerns very seriously, and work communities and the natural environment. hard to minimise the impact of our work. However, our investments also bring progress, meeting consumers’ growing After all, it’s good to talk. And it’s even appetite for energy, delivered where and better to listen. TENNET TODAY 13 SuedLink/SuedOstLink in Germany In terms of cable length and the scale of investment, these are two of the biggest energy infrastructure projects in Europe. We set up a unique process of integrating stakeholders into the early stages of planning before work began, including the legal process. Using an online planning tool that shows the work of our environmental planners, stakeholders can share information, such as any potential obstacles to the routes we are investigating. STAKEHOLDERS Borssele – Tilburg connection In 2017, we held many different stakeholder meetings to discuss the construction of the new high-voltage line between Borssele and Tilburg – a rural area in the Netherlands. We listened carefully to the concerns of local residents and found ways to blend the overland connection into the landscape. After a process of extensive dialogue, challenging negotiations were settled harmoniously, with everyone accepting the process. Looking back at 2008 20 years of achievement TenneT takes over management of the 110 kV in the European and 150 kV grids from the Dutch regional grid electricity market operators.

Load more

  29

Copy Link