Elering will commence the construction of two underground high-voltage cables in Tartu

Elering has entered into a contract with the construction company Leonhard Weiss for the construction of two 110-kilovolt underground high-voltage cables in Tartu for connecting the Tartu, Emajõe and Ülejõe substations. The construction work will cost 7.8 million euros plus value added tax.

“By constructing the underground cables, the different regions of Tartu will be granted a reinforced electricity connection, which improves the security of supply. Last, but not least, the visual pollution caused by overhead power lines will be decreased,” said Taavi Veskimägi, Chairman of the Management Board of Elering.

The underground cable to be constructed between Tartu and Emajõe substations will replace an overhead power line section with a length of 2.5 kilometres. The connection is already underground between the substations in the rest of the section. An entirely new underground cable line will be constructed between Tartu and Ülejõe substations with a length of six kilometres.

The work will first commence in Ülejõe substation for connecting the underground cable line by constructing the necessary equipment. Meanwhile, the final design projects of both cables are pending. The installation work of the cables will begin this autumn and both cables need to be completed by the end of 2024.

Elering will replace all the 110-kilovolt high-voltage overhead transmission lines that currently surround the densely populated areas of Tartu in a circle within this decade. The total length of the cables to be constructed is several dozen kilometres. The construction of the new cables mainly affects the Tartu City districts of Ränilinn, Ihaste, Annelinn, Jaamamõisa, Raadi, and Supilinn.