The A-Nord power line will bring wind energy from the North Sea to North Rhine-Westphalia, providing two gigawatts of transmission capacity from 2027. The approximately 300 km long line will be laid as an underground cable. The energy cables are protected by egeplast Power Protect protective pipes.
Construction work for the highway of the future has begun: The A-Nord underground cable route is set to supply two million people in North Rhine-Westphalia with electricity from North Sea wind farms starting in 2027. A consortium of construction companies was commissioned with the construction of the underground cable route following an IPA (Integrated Project Delivery) selection process. This process allows the participating companies to be involved in all decisions from an early stage and ensures close, efficient cooperation while maintaining fair and transparent values.
The route is divided into six construction sections, three of which are located in Lower Saxony and three in North Rhine-Westphalia. Parallel to the A-Nord route, the offshore connection DolWin4/Borwin4 will be laid from Leer to Wietmarschen over a length of approximately 100 km. This means that a total of 10 cable protection pipes for underground cable construction and several accompanying pipes will be laid in this section, with up to 14 cable protection pipes in HDD crossings. The construction of two sections in Lower Saxony is primarily the responsibility of the construction company Bohlen & Doyen Bau GmbH within the IPA organization. egeplast international GmbH was largely commissioned with the supply of the cable protection pipe systems.
Philipp Oliv, Project Manager at Bohlen & Doyen Bau GmbH: “We are pleased to have gained egeplast as an experienced supplier in the field of cable protection pipes for underground cable construction. We have successfully completed other projects together in the past and look forward to continuing our cooperation.” Dr.-Ing. Marius Schröer, Head of Civil Engineering Execution in Lower Saxony IPA A-Nord at Amprion: “Amprion has also been able to rely on the experience and flexibility of egeplast as a reliable supplier of cable protection pipe systems in previous underground cable projects and looks forward to working together on this challenging project as well.”
The order volume amounts to more than 20 million euros, making the project the largest single order in egeplast’s history. Dr. Ansgar Strumann, Managing Partner: “We thank all participating companies within IPA A-Nord for the trust placed in us and the opportunity to contribute as a main supplier to this important and forward-looking project for the energy transition!” The scope of delivery includes egeplast Power Protect protective pipes from DA 250 to DA 450 mm as well as accessories.
Following the groundbreaking ceremony on October 23, 2023, with the participation of Robert Habeck, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, the first earthworks began near Meppen-Versen as part of an early start to construction under Section 44c of the EnWG. In addition to a short section in open trench installation, the federal highway B 402 has already been crossed multiple times using the HDD method. Work continued until shortly before Christmas 2023 despite adverse weather conditions and resumed on January 15, 2024, after a short winter break at the turn of the year. Another construction section was built in the Lohne-Wietmarschen area using both open and closed construction methods.
At the end of February 2024, welding work began for the laying of 10 pipe strings using the ploughing method. This method has already been successfully tested multiple times and is now being used on further test sections with different geological conditions. After the planning approval decisions for the other route sections have been issued, civil engineering work will commence there immediately. In the second half of the year, more than 1,000 employees are expected to be deployed along the entire route.
Project Description
Construction of an empty cable duct system over a length of approx.
300 km (A-Nord) and a parallel line as an offshore connection
(DolWin4/BorWin4; approx. 100 km)
Challenges
Laying in different geological conditions and
crossing various partners while complying with all
legislation and guidelines within the specified timeframe
Solution
egeplast Power Protect protective pipe systems for underground cable construction in
high and extra-high voltage grids
Installation
Open trench installation in fluid soil, closed crossing as HDD,
ploughing method in the test field
Pipe System
egeplast Power Protect pipes d 250 mm SDR 17, d 280 mm
SDR 11, d 315 mm SDR 11 & d 450 mm SDR 7.4; PE-HD accompanying pipes / d 50 x 4.6 mm SDR 11; various fittings and
connection parts for creating push-fit and welded connections
Project Participants
Amprion GmbH; Amprion Offshore GmbH; IPA A-Nord
(Fischer Teamplan Ingenieurbüro GmbH, Bohlen & Doyen Bau GmbH,
Heidkamp Erd- und Straßenbau GmbH, Bogenstahl Bauunternehmen
GmbH, Heidkamp & Hülscher GmbH & Co. KG, Rohrleitungsbau
Niederrhein GmbH, Klaus Stewering GmbH & Co. KG)
