General Electricals: GE’s g3 technology to accelerate decarbonization efforts in Norway

GE Renewable Energy’s Grid Solutions business (NYSE-GE) has been awarded a contract by Norwegian utility Elvia to deliver an SF6 free substation in Heggedal, close to Oslo’s urban area featuring GE’s industry-leading g3 (pronounced “g”- cubed) gas. g3 gas is a game-changing alternative to SF6 – a potent greenhouse gas – with a global warming potential (GWP) that is about 99% less compared to SF61.

The project scope covers the design, engineering, delivery, and erection & commissioning of six bays of GE’s F-35-41g 145 kV g3 insulated switchgear and associated electrical balance of plant. This also represents the delivery of one of the most digitally advanced gas-insulated substations (GIS) in the world, with a GE digital solution that includes low power instrument transformers (LPIT) and GE’s BWatch, an online digital monitoring system to digitally transfer data via the IEC 61850 protocol.

“Our contract with Elvia demonstrates that utility operators are becoming increasingly aware of their environmental footprint and the impact it has on their community and the world around them. Today, 25 leading electrical utilities have already adopted GE’s g3 gas products for their high voltage networks, avoiding the addition of more than a million tons of CO2 equivalent to the grid. That’s the equivalent of removing almost half a million petrol cars from the road for one year,” said Espen Bostadlokken, Commercial Leader for the Nordics region at GE’s Grid Solutions.

A recent EU Commission report concluded that fluoronitrile-based gas mixtures – such as g3 gas – may be the only insulating and switching gas alternative to SF6 when space is a constraint, such as in urban areas. That’s because fluoronitrile-based gas products feature the same compactness and performance as traditional SF6 equipment, unlike other SF6-free solutions.

GE’s g3 gas-insulated products are currently available for live-tank circuit-breakers and gas-insulated substations (GIS) up to 145 kV, as well as gas-insulated lines (GIL) up to 420 kV.