Construction begins for SuedLink: Groundbreaking takes place on 11 September 2023
The Elbe crossing of SuedLink has been approved. All preparatory construction measures have been running at full speed since the beginning of the year, and the official start of construction in the presence of representatives from politics, business, and public life will take place on September 11 in Wewelsfleth (Steinburg district). The transmission system operator TenneT received the planning approval decision from the Federal Network Agency yesterday. This is an important milestone for the timely completion of SuedLink.
With a length of around 700 kilometers and an investment sum of ten billion euros, SuedLink is a central infrastructure project of the energy transition in Germany. The project is in the planning approval process in all sections, in which the final route of the line will be determined. TenneT is responsible for the northern section of the route and the converters in Schleswig-Holstein and Bavaria for SuedLink. TransnetBW is responsible for the southern section of the route and the converter in Baden-Württemberg.
Tim Meyerjürgens, COO of TenneT, explains:
“The successful completion of the complex approval process shows that we have significantly gained momentum with SuedLink. Now we will break ground on September 11 and start the tunnel construction at the Elbe. I am looking forward to this project milestone in the presence of Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck as well as state ministers Tobias Goldschmidt and Christian Meyer. This is an important step towards the commissioning of SuedLink in 2028.”
Major challenge: The lines must go under the Elbe
The Elbe crossing is one of SuedLink's largest special structures. Between Wewelsfleth in Schleswig-Holstein and Wischhafen in Lower Saxony, SuedLink will pass the Elbe over a distance of around five kilometers using a tunnel structure. The so-called segmental lining method will be used, in which a specially designed tunnel boring machine will dig under the Elbe like a mole.
The tunnel is expected to take four and a half years to build
In the further course, six 525 kV direct current cables will be installed and connected to the SuedLink underground cables on both sides of the Elbe. Rails in the tunnel will allow it to be accessed with tunnel vehicles so that the tunnel remains accessible for maintenance and repair work even after the construction phase is completed. The construction time is expected to take four and a half years.
The preparatory construction measures at the shaft site in Schleswig-Holstein were already completed by TenneT in June. The measures included, among other things, site clearance and surface stabilization.
What does that mean?
At least things are moving forward with Suedlink – but the construction time of four and a half years for the Elbe Tunnel alone means that the important north-south route for offshore power in Germany will still take a long time. In the hope that there will be no delays and that Suedlink will genuinely be able to transmit power from north to south starting in 2028.
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