Enexis and TenneT to build new high voltage substation in glasshouse horticulture area

25-06-2010 Grid operators TenneT and Enexis are planning to construct a new high voltage substation in the Californië area, a glasshouse horticulture region in the south of the Netherlands. Local horticultural businesses generate large amounts of electricity in combined heat and power (CHP) plants, and the substation is needed to ensure that this electricity can be supplied back to the grid. The new facility is scheduled to be taken into operation in the second quarter of 2011.

Enexis and TenneT expect a considerable increase in the demand for electricity transmission in the region. The decision to build a new electricity substation was reached in consultation with the local authority (the municipality of Horst aan de Maas), the Greenport Venlo, project developer Californië B.V., and the local glasshouse horticulture industry. Periodic consultations will also be held with industry federation LLTB (which represents the interests of farmers and horticulturists in the province of Limburg) in order to ensure a future proof supply of energy and to maintain a proper balance between the rising supply and demand of electricity in the region. CHP units in the Californië area will supply approx. 70 to 100 MW back to the public grid, a quantity equivalent to the annual consumption of forty to sixty thousand households.

The substation will be built on the Horsterweg road, near the route of the local high voltage power line. The facility will be linked up to the 150 kV transmission grid by means of a branch connection to the high voltage power line. In addition to the required control and safety equipment and switchgear, transformers will be installed to convert the electricity to a higher voltage level. The construction of this substation involves an investment of around 10 million euro. Construction work is expected to begin after the summer. A special information evening will be organised to explain the plans to local residents.