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Korean Cable Demonstration Project Selects American Superconductor as Sole Supplier of High Temperature Superconductor Wire
Westborough, MA, Nov. 21: American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ:AMSC), a leading electricity solutions company, today announced that it has signed an agreement with Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI) to be an international collaborator on Korea's Development of Advanced Power Systems by Applied Superconductivity technologies (DAPAS) program. AMSC will be the sole supplier of high temperature superconductor (HTS) wire providing 14 km (8.7 miles) of first generation (1G) HTS wire for the project. AMSC expects to ship the wire before the end of calendar year 2005. The Company will also provide technical assistance with cryogenics and transmission system engineering. LS Cable of Korea is responsible for the development and manufacture of the cable, terminations and cryogenics system. Currently in the final stages of planning, the project will test a 70-meter (m) (229 feet) long, cold dielectric cable rated for 22.9 kilo-volt (kV) and 1.26 kilo-Ampere (kA).
This agreement follows the successful year-long operating test by LS Cable of their first HTS power cable system. AMSC supplied the HTS wire for this power cable in January 2004. The cable project was funded, in part, by the DAPAS program. The 30 m (98 feet), cold dielectric, HTS cable system was rated for 22.9 kV and 1.26kA with a power capacity of 50 mega-volt-amperes (MVA). The successful test of this cable served as endorsement of the next HTS cable project and the selection of AMSC as an international partner on the project. Tests of this first HTS power cable system were conducted in a lab setting; the new project will be tested in a live transmission grid.
"The successful testing of the DAPAS power cable brings Korea closer to realizing our vision for high temperature superconductor power cables," said Dr. Jeonwook Cho, project manager of HTS power cable at KERI. "AMSC's wire was instrumental in the success of our first project, and we look forward to working with them on this new cable project and as we continue to develop and commercialize HTS technology."
HTS cables will offer several advantages, including very high power capacity and a very small footprint, making them much easier to site even in dense, older urban areas. Another advantage includes controllability, allowing larger amounts of power to be pumped economically and reliably into congested areas.
"KERI and LS Cable are respected around the world for their progressive development of HTS cable applications for power grids," said Angelo Santamaria, vice president and general manager of AMSC's wire business. "We are honored to be selected as the sole wire supplier for this important and highly visible project."
Commercial Momentum Building
With nine cable manufacturers participating in HTS cable projects around the world, it is clear that momentum is building for the commercial introduction of HTS cables. In addition to the successful DAPAS program announced by LS Cable last month, other projects utilizing AMSC HTS wire include the Changtong Power Cable Company's live demonstration of a three phase HTS power cable in a grid in China; a transmission-level power cable being manufactured by Nexans for installation in the grid of Long Island Power Authority in Brookhaven, New York; a distribution-level power cable being manufactured by Condumex Cable Company in Queretaro, Mexico; and an HTS distribution power cable being manufactured by Ultera to serve the electrical distribution load fed from a large substation in Columbus, Ohio.
American Superconductor's HTS wire carries more than 150 times the electrical current of similar sized copper wire. With a small amount of HTS wire rather than large quantities of copper stranded into the core of an AC cable, three to five times more power can be carried in the same right of way offering new ways for power grid engineers and operators to reduce grid congestion, increase power system capacity and expand options for upgrading electric distribution with low environmental impact.
For more information about HTS power cables please visit: http://www.amsuper.com/products/htsWire/HTSCables.cfm. To learn more about AMSC's high temperature superconductor wire solutions, see: http://www.amsuper.com/products/htsWire/index.cfm
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