Neckarwestheim

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Arms

Basis data
Federal state:	Baden-Württemberg
Administrative region:	Stuttgart
District:	Heilbronn
Coordinates:	Template:Koordinate Text Artikel
Elevation:	254 ü. NN
Area:	13,97 km²
Inhabitants:	3,524 (Dec 31st, 2005)
Population density:	252 inhabitants per km²
Post code:	74382
Dialling code:	07133
Vehicle registration plate:	HN
Municipal key:	08 1 25 066
Town structure:	1 district
Address of the town council:	Marktplatz 1 74382 Neckarwestheim
Website:	www.neckarwestheim.de
Politics
Mayor:	Mario Dürr
Position of Neckarwestheim in the District of Heilbronn

Neckarwestheim is a municipality with 3524 inhabitants in the district Heilbronn, Baden-Württemberg, south-west Germany. It is located at the Neckar river and is well-known as the location of a nuclear power station.

[edit] Geography

[edit] Geographical position

Neckarwestheim is located in the south of the District of Heilbronn.

[edit] Neighbouring municipalities

Neighbouring towns and municipalities of Neckarwestheim are (clockwise): Lauffen (Neckar), Ilsfeld (both in the same district), Großbottwar, Mundelsheim, Besigheim, Gemmrigheim and Kirchheim (Neckar) (all of the district of Ludwigsburg).

[edit] History

Neckarwestheim was first mentioned on March 5th, 1123 in a document of Holy Roman Emperor Henry V called as Westheim. In 1673 the town came to Württemberg and was renamed in Kaltenwesten. On August 19th, 1884 it was renamed in Neckarwestheim by a royal decree. In 1938 it came to the district of Heilbronn.

After World War II the currently agricultural characterized town received many refugees and exiles of the East. In the 1970s, the nuclear power station of Neckarwestheim was built on the previous area of a quarry. By this new power station and its paid trade tax, the municipal finances became very rich.

In 1995, Neckarwestheim was in the centre of attention in an international noticed scandal: The previous mayor Horst Armbrust was accused of having embezzled more than 40 million DM of the municipal fortune and a donation. He put this money in different dubious investments and hoped for high yields. However, the money disappeared nearly without a trace. Armbrust was arrested and committed for trial on February 8th, 1995. On January 24th, 1996, he was sentenced by the district court Stuttgart of unfaithfulness and falsification of a document to an imprisonment of 8 years and a half. On May 17th, 1999, the district court Konstanz imposed this suspended sentence. Until February 2005 the municipality succeeded in getting back around 13 million €. The court costs amount to 2 million €.

[edit] Religions

There's a separate Protestant parish in Neckarwestheim. The Catholic parish of Lauffen am Neckar is responsible for its Catholic christians.

[edit] Nuclear power station

Neckarwestheim is the location of the joint nuclear power station Neckar (GKN) with 2 pressurized water reactors.

GKN 1: The nominal electrical power of block I, in service since 1976, is 741 megawatts. The nominal three phase AC power is 567 megawatts and for the traction current power 174 megawatts. The traction current generator is the world's largest generator for single phase AC. The generator block 1 is rated 21,000 V at a current of 27,000 amperes, and the traction current generator is rated 14,500 V and a current of 12,000 amperes. The current produced by the generators is stepped up to 220 kV (three-phase alternating current) and/or 110 kV (traction current) with the machine transformers. Block I is the only nuclear power station, which produces traction current.

GKN 2: The nominal electrical power of block 2, in service since 1988 , is 1365 megawatts. The generator produces three-phase alternating current with a voltage of 27,000 V and a current of 35,000 ampere. Unlike Unit 1, no dedicated traction current production takes place, but some of the power produced is converted at the traction current substation. This is transmitted through the 380 kV generator transformer block of the II and the 380 kV-machine transformer of the motor-generator sets.

Traction current converter plant: the GKN station also has a traction current converter plant. The traction converter plant Neckarwestheim, which is situated close to the switchgear of block II, has two identical sets, consisting of a three-phase AC motor with 12 poles and a four pole single phase synchronous generator. The rated voltage of the three-phase alternating current asynchronous machine and the traction current machine is 12,5kV. The set has a length of 17.5 meters and a maximum width of 7 meters. The nominal power rating for each set is 70 megawatts, which are the largest traction current motor-generator sets ever built. The traction current converter plant feeds the 110 kV traction power network through appropriate transformers. Power can be transferred from the Block II nuclear generator over the 380 kV transmission network.

Dimensions of the reinforced concrete building are:

Height: 26.80 m
total width: 40.4 m
width cultivation: 12 m
height cultivation: 19.25 m
machinery building: 42.40 m
of overall length: 52.40 m

[edit] Cooling towers

In order to avoid overheating of the river Neckar, both blocks have cooling towers. These are not built in the usual way. Block I uses two rows of cell cooling towers. Each row has a length of 186.8 meters and a height of 18 meters. Block II uses a hybrid cooling tower with a height of 51.22 meters.

[edit] Hybrid cooling tower

Overall height: 51.22 m
overall height over basin level: 48.0 m
mouth diameter: 160.0 m
basin diameter: 120.0 m
chimney height: 24.97 m
air outlet diameter: 73.6 m
cooling performance: 2500 MW

[edit] Malfunctions

In 1977 block I had the second most serious incident of a nuclear power plant of the German Federal Republic to that date. Numerous errors of a new crew lead to damage of the secondary cycle, and at the same time a defect of a valve lead to an automatic reactor shutdown.
27 July 2004: Water contaminated with two megabecquerels leaks unnoticed from block II into the Neckar river. As a result, for the first time in the Federal Republic the operator company of a nuclear power plant has to pay a fine (25,000 euro). A managing director was dismissed.

[edit] Powerlines

Power produced at GKN is transmitted over a transmission line carrying two circuits of traction current and three-phase alternating current line to the 220 kV-three phase AC and the 110 kV-traction current switchyard situated east of Neckarwestheim. This line is hung on pylons of unusual design with 5 cross beams. On the lowest cross bar there are two traction current circuits, while the second, third and fourth cross beam carry the three-phase circuits. These are operated in the case for the GKN 1 with 220 kV and in the case of the GKN 2 with 380 kV. On the highest cross beam two ground conductors are installed. It is remarkable that the traction current circuits were insulated for 220 kV, although they are operated only with 110 kV. This measure was taken, because in case of a disturbance of the parallel 380 kV-line overvoltages can occur, which insulation designed for 110 kV cannot stand.

The traction current lines from the GKN to the traction current switching Neckarwestheim and from this to the central substation in Stuttgart Zazenhausen are the only traction current lines constructed with four bundled conductors.

The three-phase 380 kV circuit leading away from the nuclear power station GKN 2 runs past the 220 kV-three phase switchyard Neckarwestheim to the transformer station Großgartach near Heilbronn. To the GKN also runs another 110 kV-line for three phase AC with one circuit, which takes its origin in the switchgear of the coal fired power station Walheim. This line is not for transport of the power produced by the GKN, but for start-up power of the nuclear plant.

It is also remarkable that Neckarwestheim and the GKN never had a track connection to the railway network.

[edit] Politics

Neckarwestheim

[edit] Mayors

1977 - 1995: Horst Armbrust
1996 - today: Mario Dürr

[edit] District council

By the communal election of June 13th, 2004, the district council of Neckarwestheim got 12 seats. The result is as follows:

CDU: 39.2% (-2.3), 5 seats (=)
SPD: 33.5% (+3.4), 4 seats (=)
Freie Bürgerbewegung Neckarwestheim: 27.3% (-1.0), 3 seats (=)

Further member of the district council and its chairman is the mayor.

[edit] Arms and flag

Blazon: In a splitted sign, in front a green wreath, behind in green a silver spade.

The flag of the municipality is green and white.

The spade was already shown in a seal of 1684. Until 1938 there was an arms with splitted sign and three branches. After the branches were replaced by the wreath of the 1684's arms. Simultaneous arms and flag were laid down and bestowed by the ministry of the interior on March 4th, 1963.

[edit] Twin town

Neckarwestheim maintains a partnership with the French municipality Ceton in the Department Orne.

[edit] Culture and sights

[edit] Buildings

Liebenstein Castle was built in 1120. In 1982 it was bought by the municipality and passed on to an association. Today the castle contents a restaurant and hotel. Next to the castle is a golf area.

[edit] Economy and infrastructure

The most important enterprise of Neckarwestheim is its nuclear power station carried on by the EnBW.

[edit] Wine-growing

150 wine-growers of Neckarwestheim and Ilsfeld's district Schozach joined together to the Wine-growing community Neckarwestheim eG. Neckarwestheim belongs to the wine area of Württemberg.

[edit] Traffic

Neckarwestheim is located near of the A81 and the B27. The next stations are located in Lauffen (Neckar) and Kirchheim (Neckar).

[edit] Education

In the town there's a primary school. The local library has around 13,000 media at its disposal. Apart from three communal kindergartens there's a Protestant one in the town.