According to the updated schedule, the repair work on the Estonian-Finnish power cable EstLink 2 will be completed no later than 12 September. On 13 September, the power cable will be connected to the market, Delfi Ärileht reports. As previously reported, the EstLink 2 power cable was supposed to be put into operation on 1 September. “Just this weekend, the installation of one of the two joints, with which a section of the replacement cable will be connected to the offshore submarine and land cable, was completed. The installation of the first joint joint gives us confidence that the installation of the second such connection will be completed in the coming month, after which we will conduct tests and complete the general construction work necessary to resume the operation of Estlink 2,” explained Reigo Kebja, member of the board of Elering. “When installing the joints, it is important that the surrounding environment is clean and the air humidity is at a certain level. For this purpose, a closed tent was installed on the repair platform, in which the humidity level was constantly monitored. The weather conditions were difficult, but nevertheless, the lower coupling at the junction of land and sea has already been installed. Elering contractor teams with specific knowledge have worked and continue to work on site, the work requires great physical and mental effort from them. The coupling is installed manually, the work will be carried out around the clock until the coupling is installed,” explained Kebja. This week, the cable will be laid in the trench, it will be laid in a permanent place. After that, the repair platform installed in the sea will be dismantled, and the drained section of the sea will again be under water. The area of the platform installed in the sea for the repair of the EstLink 2 cable is several thousand square meters. A breakwater was built to protect it. In order to ensure the safe execution of repair work, a platform of about 400 square meters was erected on the drained section of the sea. A tower crane had to be installed to deliver construction materials and equipment to the construction site. “The cable-laying vessel delivered more than 300 meters of new cable to the platform installed at sea, then the cable was pulled through the pipe with a rope. In order for the cable to be installed without damage, the crew had to constantly hold it and monitor various technical indicators,” Kebja described the most important steps before installing the joints. The EstLink 2 cable was disconnected on January 26 due to a malfunction. At the end of February, the exact location of the fault was determined. The 650-megawatt EstLink 2 cable began operating in 2014. Before the failure in January, the EstLink 2 cable was one of the most reliable DC connections in the Baltic Sea region. Read RusDelfi wherever it is convenient for you. Follow us on Facebook, Telegram, Instagram and even TikTok.
