PPL May June 2023 PT - Flipbook - Page 20
Pulp Paper & Logistics
18 ABB
Billerud’s Karlsborg paper mill
near Kalix in Sweden is the
world’s most northerly
says Henrik Jakobsson, electrical
& automation technician at
Billerud.
Time to upgrade
Every so often, however, a larger
upgrade project is required to
ensure the long-term reliability
of the plant’s switchgear, which
has been in service since the
1980s. In the second half of 2022
this involved two ABB service
May/June 2023
engineers coming in on two
occasions to replace incoming
circuit breakers in seven selected
items of low-voltage switchgear
throughout the plant. Ten
medium-voltage circuit breakers
were also replaced.
“Billerud chose a site-built
solution, which is the most
extensive renovation you can
do without replacing the entire
switchgear. It is very cost-
effective and also a sustainable
option that allows switchgear
from the 1980s to have a new
life and to live on,” says Patrik
Granlund, sales manager at ABB
Electrification.
Six breakers were replaced with
new Emax2 breakers during a
stop after the summer of 2022
and the seventh in November
of the same year. Replacing
the old ALG and ALH variants
in the switchgear improved
the safety of the equipment
and immediately increased the
availability of spare parts.
Emax2 is also the only breaker
of its kind that can both protect
electrical circuits and reduce
energy consumption based on
user needs.
“Replacing a breaker in this
comprehensive way takes
about seven-to-eight hours,