Norwegian company Statnett cuts electricity flows to southern Sweden by 45%
OSLO, Nov. 23 (Reuters) – Norwegian transmission system operators Statnett announced on Tuesday that they were limiting electricity transfers to southern Sweden, reducing capacity by 1,000 MW, or 45%, in reaction to lower flow in the opposite direction.
As of midnight, the capacity available between the Norwegian auction area NO1 and the Swedish price area SE3 will be reduced to 1,100-1,200 megawatts (MW), Statnett said in a market post.
This compares to a total capacity of 2,200 MW between the two zones, Statnett spokesman Henrik Glette told Reuters.
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Statnett will no longer apply the so-called system protection parameters, which help to increase the exchange capacity at national level and between the Nordic countries, while presenting a certain risk in the operation of the network, said the manager of network in a separate release.
Statnett’s Swedish counterpart, Svenska Kraftnaet, has not applied the principle for some time to deal with internal bottlenecks. This resulted in lower imports to Norway at times of lower prices in Sweden, but full exports to Sweden when prices were higher there, and led to imbalanced flows, which is difficult, said Glette.
“Transparency, reciprocity and common understanding are the cornerstones of the Nordic power system. We now see that there is a need for a more similar practice in operations,” Statnett CEO Hilde Tonne said in the press release.
The Nordic power system is undergoing major changes related to the reduction of nuclear power, new wind power generation and new international connections, but these have been known for many years, Tonne added.
“A well-functioning market requires transparent, balanced and predictable access to capacity and equal conditions for calculating capacity on both sides of the exchange,” she said.
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Report by Nora Buli, edited by Terje Solsvik
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