DOE and SuperPower, Inc. commemorated on February 21 a $27 million project
to install a 350-meter high-temperature superconducting (HTS) cable
between two electrical substations in Albany. While that might not
sound like much cable for the money, the project is the first
demonstration of a technology that could someday be used to build a
more energy efficient power grid. The HTS cable reduces energy loss by
up to 10%, and wires using the same technology could potentially be
integrated into generators, transformers, cables, and fault current
limiters, making most of the equipment that produces and delivers
power more energy efficient. On the other end of the power line, HTS
wires can be employed in motors, providing an energy efficiency
improvement for one of the largest electrical loads served by electric
utilities.