GKK Etzenricht
GKK Etzenricht, short for Gleichstromkurzkupplung Etzenricht (Etzenricht HVDC back‑to‑back station), was a high‑voltage direct current facility near Etzenricht in Bavaria, Germany. Built on the site of the existing Etzenricht substation, it was created to enable power exchange between Germany and the Czech Republic. Construction began in 1991, first power appeared in 1992, and the facility officially opened in 1993. It operated from 1993 to 1995 and was shut down after the German and Czech power grids were synchronized.
The installation consisted of two large converter units (static inverters) inside a hall and was designed for a DC connection at 380 kV. It initially allowed around 600 MW of power transfer. After the grids were synchronized in 1995, the capacity increased to about 1316 MW. In 1997 a second 380 kV link to the Prestice substation in the Czech Republic was opened, raising the potential exchange via Etzenricht to about 2895 MW.
Following the 1997 expansion, most external parts of the GKK Etzenricht were dismantled and the system ceased to operate. Only some components remained on site. In 2006 the facility was sold to an Austrian recycling company, and by spring 2009 the remaining parts were dismantled and scrapped.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 19:20 (CET).