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Today marks an important milestone as the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA), which manages the EU LIFE Programme, validated a major change of GE Vernova’s “LIFE SF6-free HV Breaker” project.
The initial plan had focused on developing the future 245 kV live tank circuit breaker without SF6, a gas commonly used in switchgear, using our g3 alternative instead. g3 is an insulating and switching gas mixture combining CO2 and O2 with a small percentage of a fluoronitrile.
However, it appeared that the circuit breaker we already developed at 145 kV could achieve similar performance without the fluoronitrile, with only a few mechanical adaptations. Guided by our commitment to implementing life cycle assessments and reducing our equipment’s carbon footprint, we decided to transition from SF6 gas to CO2-O2 technology to develop future live tank circuit breakers. Furthermore, the CO2-O2 gas mixture allows circuit breakers to perform in temperatures as low as –50°C, broadening the scope of application to extremely cold countries.
We, therefore, submitted a proposal to the European Union, in this case to CINEA, to develop a 420 kV CO2-O2 live tank circuit breaker. With two interrupters to switch the power, a 420 kV live tank circuit breaker contains twice as much SF6 as a 245 kV breaker, which is a good reason to tackle 420 kV first.
Today, CINEA signed the amendment to change the scope of the “LIFE SF6-free HV Breaker” project from a 245 kV g3 circuit breaker to a 420 kV CO2-O2 circuit breaker.
These scope changes further propel our efforts to decarbonize our switchgear, thereby contributing to the decarbonization of high-voltage grids worldwide.
While g3 remains the best solution to deliver the lowest carbon footprint for metal-enclosed equipment such as dead tank circuit breakers, gas-insulated substations and hybrid switchgear, CO2-O2 paves the way for a new era of live tank circuit breakers.
