Transformer transferred from Schelle to Malderen

Transformers play a vital role in high-voltage substations: they convert electricity to a higher or lower voltage level. The Schelle high-voltage substation no longer needs a transformer because the 70 kV grid there is being dismantled, while a transformer is required in Malderen to manage upgrades to the electricity grid. We therefore transferred the Schelle transformer to Malderen in the week of 16 April.

Special convoy via the Brussels-Scheldt Sea Canal

This was quite some task, as transformers are large, heavy pieces of equipment and require special transportation solutions. Project manager Katrien Van Mulders looks back on the operation: “We transported the transformer in three stages. First of all, it was loaded onto a lorry that could cope with abnormal loads. Next, it was hoisted onto a ship so that part of the journey could be made via the Brussels-Scheldt Sea Canal. Finally, the transformer was loaded onto another lorry that carried it to its final destination in Malderen. The whole operation took four days.”

Click here to see the full photo report on the transformer transfer operation.

Update on the dismantling of the 70 kV line between Schelle and Mechelen

Work on dismantling the 70 kV line between Schelle and Mechelen began in spring 2017. Activities were temporarily put on hold in March and early April this year because the access roads were waterlogged.

Suspending work in conditions like these minimises damage to farmland. We will resume work on demolishing the high-voltage pylons in May, starting with the pylons around the Tomorrowland festival ground in Boom. So far, 30 of the 78 pylons have been dismantled.