Evaluation of underground cables overload capability for increased capacity utilization

The Swedish electricity grid is facing increasing strain due to electrification and variable electricity production, while opportunities to expand the grid are limited. This makes better utilization of existing infrastructure necessary, where underground cables play a central role but are often conservatively dimensioned. However, to enable such an approach, collaboration between several parts of the power system is required, from near-analysis and monitoring to protection and commissioning.

This thesis investigates how the capacity utilization in underground cables can be increased through dynamic temperature calculation under varying loads. Production data from a wind turbine is used in network calculations in Siemens' PSS®SINCAL software to calculate the current load, and a thermal model is developed in Python to calculate the conductor temperature over time. The results show that dynamic modeling provides a more realistic picture of the cable's temperature development and can enable higher loads for limited periods without exceeding permissible temperature limits.

Supervisor: Alma Nordquist, Siemens
Subject Reviewer: Christer Törnkvist, Uppsala University

Speaker:

Nilo Javani, System Engineer
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Alma Nordquist, Specialist Engineer
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