"This was a great opportunity to meet friends and colleagues, old and new, from the transmission sector," said Hughes. "The level of interest was significant, and we enjoyed fruitful dialogue with participants from 16 countries at our booth alone." Naturally, Irish Transmission Operators and Asset Owners were well represented, "but the level of interest from wider EU and beyond really surprised us," added Hughes.

 

The event also illustrated that the capabilities of composite technologies which, while well adopted in certain markets, are perhaps even now not as well understood in more mature markets. "It was particularly encouraging to see an increasing level of interest from countries in mainland Europe," stated Hughes. "In fact, some are coming to the view that ACCC conductor also represents a valuable component in the "Smart Grid" technology mix."

 

With 50,000 km installed, ACCC conductor is increasingly being actively considered by the Transmission and Distribution community for both new lines and reconductoring. The low-sag benefits, coupled with a capacity increase of up to 100% on the same towers deliver a "quick-win" for such applications.

 

Transmission operators faced with load imbalances, particularly in areas where large amounts of renewable - and often asynchronous - generation are being fed into the grid with concomitant temperature spikes are particularly interested in identifying where composite technologies have a role to play.

CTC Global's composite core conductor technologies are generally more aligned to longer transmission lengths. However, the UK generally and Scotland in particular are proving to be strong markets for ACCC® high-performance composite core conductors. When increased capacity within existing pathways is required through some of the most striking scenery in Europe requiring a minimum of disturbance, the operator's options are, indeed, limited.

 

Naturally, CTC Global had a strong desire to engage with this local client base, while also placing itself firmly in the middle of the distribution supplier community, so we chose to participate in this annual event which was held in Glasgow, Scotland this year.

 

"While many of the challenges are similar, the Scottish requirement for heavy ice load sustainment in particular plays to CTC's strengths" stated Peter Hughes, CTC's VP for Northern Europe. "One of the reasons for our success in, and potential of, these markets is CTC's development of a ULS (Ultra-Low Sag) core, strung on existing infrastructure which is several decades old and which traverses particularly undulating terrain, a common feature of the Scottish Highlands," he added.

 

Naturally, the majority of visitors to CTC Global's exhibit were from the DSO community, representing countries ranging from Northern Europe to Australasia and many in-between. "However, the number of FEED (Front End Engineering Design), EPCs and other specialist consultancies present at the show also contributed to making this a very worthwhile event," added Hughes.

 

With nearly 50,000 km energized or contracted, CTC Global's ACCC® conductor technology is increasingly being adopted where higher transmission capacity within tight pathways is required. ACCC has also been accredited by a third-party agency to reduce line-losses over a given length by between 27 and 31% when compared with traditional ACSR conductors.

 

  

SCS is a trusted and neutral global leader with more than three decades of experience in third-party environmental, sustainability and certification, auditing, testing and standards development. SCS also certified  Conductor Comparison Program tool as a valid way to estimate reductions in line losses and associated CO2 emissions achieved by installing ACCC conductor in lieu of traditional ACSR conductor. Both SCS certifications were conducted in accordance with ISO 14044:2006 standard for Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), a methodology used for evaluating the environmental performance of various products.

SCS Global's Certification Assessment of the ACCC conductor considered a range of conductor sizes, line lengths and voltages representing a number of project types in countries such as the U.S., Indonesia, Germany, India and Chile that have varied grid mixes and associated emission factors.