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American Superconductor Announces Major
Breakthrough in Electricity with Its 2G Wire
Westborough, MA, July 25: American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ:AMSC),
a leading energy technologies company, announced today it has achieved
commercial levels of electric current for the first time in long lengths of
second generation (2G) high temperature superconductor (HTS) wire. This is the
first time commercial levels of electrical current have been successfully
achieved in long lengths (over 300 feet) by a low cost industrial process,
making possible the emergence of this technology from the laboratory into the
marketplace. HTS wires conduct large quantities of electricity with 100%
efficiency when cooled with environmentally friendly liquid nitrogen, the
coolant of choice for superconductor electric power transmission and
distribution cables.
"This is a major breakthrough in electricity. It is the first-ever, commercial
grade 2G wire that has been produced by a high volume, low-cost, scalable
industrial process. I expect that this achievement will have a significant
impact on the future of power grids worldwide," said Greg Yurek, chief executive
officer, American Superconductor. "I believe this breakthrough will do for the
electrical grid what optical fibers did for telecommunications. The emergence of
optical fibers had a tremendous ripple effect on areas well beyond telecom, and
I believe that HTS wire will produce similar results. Our ultra-thin wires -
only the thickness of two human hairs - have the ability to transmit massive
amounts of power to, and through, congested urban areas where the greatest
demand for power exists. Because of the advances in electrical performance we
are achieving day after day with 2G wire and with the continuous reductions we
are driving in manufacturing costs, we expect the price-performance ratio of 2G
wire to be equivalent to that of copper by the end of the decade."
"AMSC wire is being utilized to manufacture a power transmission cable that will
be installed in LIPA's power grid where it will have the ability to transmit 600
megawatts of power - enough electricity to power 300,000 homes," said Mike
Hervey, Vice President, Operations at Long Island Power Authority (LIPA). "A key
value proposition of superconductor power cables is that they can deliver more
power through our grid to meet growing customer demand for electricity."
American Superconductor is rapidly ramping up its 2G wire manufacturing capacity
to meet growing demand for more efficient, higher performance electrical
products that are more power dense - or deliver more power in a smaller, lighter
package. AMSC utilizes a high throughput, low cost, proprietary manufacturing
process to manufacture ribbon-shaped wires. "We have now produced lengths of
commercial-grade 2G wire in excess of 300 feet that are about 4 millimeters wide
and that conduct 140 Amperes of electric current with 100% efficiency when
cooled with liquid nitrogen," said Alex Malozemoff, chief technical officer,
American Superconductor. "You would need over 100 copper wires of the same
dimensions to conduct as much current as one of these 2G wires. To put this into
perspective, in high-voltage power transmission systems, just one of these wires
would be able to carry enough power to serve the needs of approximately one
thousand homes."
"This achievement continues American Superconductor's success in developing and
delivering HTS-based electricity solutions to the market," Yurek added. "The
need for superconductivity solutions to relieve highly congested electric power
grids is being recognized in many levels of world governments and its importance
was recently cited in the G-8's Energy Security Plan as one of the new
technologies necessary in the construction of advanced electricity grids. This
technology has the very real potential to change the world and offer a
lower-cost, more energy efficient, environmentally friendly, energy solution."
About American Superconductor's 2G HTS Products
AMSC's 2G HTS wire, also known as 344 superconductors, are designed as a drop-in
replacement for customers currently using first generation (1G) HTS wire. The
344 superconductors comprise 2G HTS wire clad with ultra-thin strips of copper
or stainless steel. 344 superconductors offer significantly higher power density
and efficiency compared with similar copper-based wire products. As a result,
electrical systems that incorporate HTS wire are dramatically smaller, lighter
and more cost effective than comparable systems based on copper wire. The
applications for HTS wire include power transmission and distribution cables,
propulsion motors and generators, degaussing cable systems, synchronous
condensers and fault current limiters. For more information about American
Superconductor's HTS products, please visit: http://www.amsuper.com/products/htsWire/2GWireTechnology.cfm
.
About American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ:AMSC)
AMSC is the world's principal vendor of high temperature superconductor (HTS)
wire and large rotating superconductor machinery, and it is a world-leading
supplier of dynamic reactive power grid stabilization products. AMSC's HTS wire
and power electronic converters are at the core of a broad range of new
electricity transmission and distribution, transportation, medical and
industrial processing applications, including dynamic reactive power grid
stabilization solutions, large ship propulsion motors and generators, smart,
controllable, superconductor power cables and advanced defense systems. The
company's products are supported by hundreds of patents and licenses covering
technologies fundamental to Revolutionizing the Way the World Uses
Electricity(TM). More information is available at www.amsuper.com.
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