GE Vernova announced that its Grid Solutions business will manufacture, deliver and commission the world’s first 245 kilovolt (kV) SF6-free gas-insulated substation (GIS) for RTE in France. Grid Solutions will deploy its advanced B105 SF6-free GIS, a solution that will support RTE in replacing sulfur hexafluoride, SF6—a gas with a global warming potential 24,300 times greater than CO2—with its g3 alternative. g3 allows for about 99% reduction in CO2 equivalent of the gas contribution to global warming compared to SF6.
This pilot project is part of RTE’s objective to reduce the carbon footprint of transmission infrastructure by using alternatives to SF6, while enabling energy transition by connecting low carbon energy. One 245 kV SF6-free B105 GIS will prevent the addition of approximately 20,000 tons of CO2 equivalent to its high-voltage grid. The gas-insulated substation will also include Grid Solutions’ SF6-free F35g 145 kV, which already benefits from six years of return on experience.
Developed by GE Vernova’s Grid Solutions business, the 245 kV B105 Dual Gas GIS is co-funded by the EU’s LIFE Program, the European Union’s funding instrument for the environment and climate action. The 245 kV B105 Dual Gas GIS is a result of Grid Solutions’ research funded by the LIFE21 project named LIFE SF6-free GIS. This three-and-a-half-year research project aimed to develop a 245 kV substation that is SF6-free and compatible with both SF6 and g3 gas. The substation can support networks up to 245 kV for onshore and offshore power generation and transmission, as well as energy-intensive industry applications.
GE Vernova’s Grid Solutions business launched the B105g GIS as part of its new GRiDEA decarbonization product portfolio launched at the CIGRE 2024 conference at the Palais des Congrès in Paris. Its g3 technology serves as an alternative to sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), an insulating and switching gas that has been the industry standard used for decades in high-voltage substation equipment. Identified as a very potent greenhouse gas by the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, SF6 contributes 24,300 times more emissions than CO2 if leaked and can remain in the atmosphere for up to 1,000 years.
Commenting on the ground-breaking development, Khalid Abdallaoui, Executive Director in Charge of Asset Management and Investment Program at RTE, said, “The needs of the French electricity network are significant in the coming years. The decarbonization challenges are substantial and RTE is working with all manufacturers to promote and implement technologies that will make it possible to achieve Net Zero by 2050. In 2023 we anticipated the availability of a 245 kV SF6-free GIS in the near future. Today, we are keen to be the ones that might install the world’s-first 245 kV SF6-free substation, the B105g GIS, on our high voltage grid.”
“RTE’s 245-kV SF6-free GIS substation project is proof of the market’s acceptance of our SF6-free technology as a game-changing alternative,” said Vera Silva, CTO of GE Vernova Electrification. “With the launch of our B105g GIS, we are only one step away from completing our SF6-free GIS range allowing transmission system operators in Europe and elsewhere to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of their substations by replacing SF6 with g3 gas mixture as soon as they feel ready to proceed. The SF6-free GIS range up to 420 kV is expected to be completed in 2026 with the 170 kV F35 Dual Gas GIS,” she added.
GE Vernova’s Grid Solutions business’s g3 products feature the same high performance and reliability as SF6 equipment but with a significantly reduced impact on global warming over their lifetime. According to life-cycle assessments (LCAs), based on international ISO 14040/14044 standards, they deliver a lower carbon footprint over a 40-year substation life cycle compared to the use of SF6 products. This reduced impact is achieved due to a reduction of about 99% of the gas contribution to global warming compared to SF6. Additionally, because these SF6-free switchgear have the same compact dimensions as SF6 equipment, they are designed to require no increase in emissions during the manufacturing process due to additional raw materials.
The 245 kV B105 Dual Gas substation project is one of several substation projects by RTE implementing SF6-free products (from 145 kV to 400 kV). Over the past years, after the successful implementation of its Grimaud substation, the French transmission system operator has ordered the construction of multiple F35g 145 kV g3-gas insulated substations, T155g 420 kV GIS, and GL312g 145 kV live tank circuit-breakers for its air-insulated substations.
Both development and manufacturing of these SF6-free products will take place in France.
