Sophisticated technology
The OPAL, Germany’s biggest pipeline project to date, is a billion dollar investment in supply security for German and European customers. The construction and operation of the OPAL is made possible and, most importantly, safe, thanks to sophisticated technology.
The construction of a pipeline is a mammoth project, even in terms of the project parameters: more than 26,000 steel pipes each weighing 15 tonnes have to be ordered, manufactured, checked and delivered to the right location so that they can be welded together before disappearing into the ground. Even the smallest flaw in one of the welding seams must be ruled out – that’s why the pipeline has to be thoroughly checked several times before it is brought on stream. The outer coating, which is made of the synthetic material polyethylene, and active anti-corrosion protection make sure that the ravages of time – rust in this case – do not cause any damage to the pipeline, even after it has been laid underground. Corrosion is not possible on the inside of the pipes because the gas transported is dry. The pipeline itself is not commissioned until it is approved by independent experts from TÜV, Germany’s Technical Inspection Agency.
The compressor station
The OPAL will transport natural gas over 470 kilometres from the Baltic Sea coast to the transfer station in the Erz Mountains. On its way gas loses pressure. In order to be transported over the rest of the route to Olbernhau, it has to be compressed, i.e. put under pressure again, along the way. This process is carried out in a compressor station.
