Today marks a historic day for Grid Solutions, our customers, and the environment.

Earlier today, we announced a non-exclusive, cross-licensing agreement with Hitachi ABB Power Grids Ltd., granting them use of g3, our game-changing alternative to SF6, in high voltage equipment. This will help pave the way for g3 to become the standard for such equipment and accelerate the electrical transmission industry’s shift away from the use of SF6 - the world’s most potent greenhouse gas.

SF6 has been the norm in the transmission and distribution industry for the last 50 years due to its unique dielectric properties. However, this manmade gas is 23,500 times more warming than CO? when leaked and can remain in the atmosphere for up to 3,200 years. For this reason, power technology players, including GE, have been investing in the development of more environmentally friendly alternatives to SF6.

 Having g3 – which is 99% less warming than SF6 - as the standard alternative to SF6 will make it easier for utilities and industries to plan, operate and maintain their networks. A recent EU Commission report concluded that fluoronitrile-based gas mixtures – such as g3 - may be the only insulating and switching gas alternative to SF6 when space is a constraint. That’s because fluoronitrile-based gas products feature the same compactness and performance as traditional SF6 equipment, unlike other green solutions.

Today, 23 leading electrical utilities in Europe have adopted our g3 equipment, avoiding the addition of more than a million tons of CO? equivalent to the grid. That’s comparable to removing about half a million gasoline cars from the road for one year. 

Congratulations to the teams helping to build a cleaner grid for the world for generations to come. Continued success!