ROMULO
OperationalIsland LinkES400 MW250 kV244 km2011
Basic information
6 fieldsAlso Known As
Mainland-Balearic Islands link · COMETA · COnección MEditerránea Transporte Alta tensión · RÓMULO · Romulus project · Majorca–Valencia interconnector · Peninsula–Balearic Islands HVDC submarine link · Sagunto–Santa Ponsa interconnector · Enlace Península-Baleares · REE ROMULO project
Status
operational
Capacity
400 MW
Type
island link
Website
Supply Chain (3)
Project Timeline (11)
Aug 2012Commercial Operations Full Power
From August 2012, the Rómulo interconnector between the Spanish Peninsula and the Balearic Islands entered normal commercial operation, ending the electrical isolation of the Balearic system. Red Eléctrica states that since then the link has operated continuously, initially supplying around 15% of Balearic electricity consumption and, by its fifth year of commercial service, covering about 23% of the archipelago’s demand and enabling significant cost and emissions reductions.
16 Dec 2011First Power
On 16 December 2011, the Balearic Islands’ electricity system received electrical energy from the Spanish Peninsula for the first time via the newly commissioned Rómulo HVDC submarine interconnection between Sagunto (Valencia) and Santa Ponsa (Majorca). Red Eléctrica reported that, following completion of the submarine link and associated infrastructure earlier in 2011, the interconnection had begun operating in a partially operational test phase to verify control and protection functions while enabling exchange of power between Majorca–Menorca and the Peninsula.
~Apr 2011Cable Installation Complete
All three 237 km submarine HVDC cables for the ROMULO interconnection between Santa Ponsa Bay (Majorca) and Sagunto (Valencia) were fully laid by mid-April 2011. Cable 1 was laid by Giulio Verne starting 13 January, cable 2 by Skagerrak starting 27 January, and cable 3 by Giulio Verne starting 28 March 2011. Each cable took approximately 2 weeks to lay. Testing began over summer 2011 ahead of commissioning in Q4 2011.
28 Mar 2011Cable Installation Start
On 28 March 2011, Red Eléctrica de España started laying the third and final submarine cable for the Romulo interconnection between the Spanish peninsula and the Balearic Islands, with a subsequent test period planned in summer 2011 ahead of commissioning later that year.
13 Jan 2011Cable Installation Start
On 13 January 2011, Red Eléctrica de España began offshore construction of the Romulo interconnector by starting to lay the first submarine cable for the HVDC electricity link between the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands, running between Sagunto (Valencia) and Santa Ponsa (Majorca).
1 Jan 2011Onss Commissioned
In 2011, following construction of the converter stations between April 2009 and December 2010 and installation of the cables, the ROMULO interconnection linking the Morvedre and Santa Ponsa substations underwent testing and was put into service, marking the commissioning of the onshore converter/substation facilities required for operation of the link.
Apr 2009Onshore Construction Start
Construction of the converter stations for the ROMULO HVDC interconnection between the Morvedre and Santa Ponsa substations, developed by Red Eléctrica, began in April 2009 as part of the overall engineering and construction phase of the link between the Spanish mainland and the Balearic Islands.
1 Feb 2008Eia Submitted
Authority: Ministerio de Medio Ambiente · Licence: Estudio de Impacto Ambiental (Environmental Impact Assessment)
The Environmental Impact Assessment (Estudio de Impacto Ambiental) and associated execution projects for the ROMULO HVDC interconnection between the Morvedre and Santa Ponsa substations were formally submitted to the Spanish Ministry of Environment and entered the administrative processing phase, which ran from February 2008 to July 2009.
May 2007Converter Supplier Selected
In May 2007, Red Eléctrica awarded the converter station contract for the Rómulo Peninsula–Balearic Islands HVDC interconnection to Siemens, tasking the German company with constructing the converter stations at Sagunto (Valencia) on the Spanish mainland and Calvià (Majorca) on the islands as part of a package of works valued at a total of 375 million euros together with the cable supply contracts.
May 2007Cable Supplier Selected
In May 2007, Red Eléctrica awarded the submarine power cable contract for the Rómulo Peninsula–Balearic Islands HVDC interconnection to a consortium of Prysmian (Italy) and Nexans (Norway), commissioning them to design, manufacture and lay the HVDC submarine power cables, with the combined converter and cable contracts totalling 375 million euros; each company manufactured one 237-kilometre HVDC cable and half of the return cable, contributing to a total of 711 kilometres of cable for the link.