The technology enables Japan's largest producer of electric wires to manufacture superconducting wires at a rate of 15 meters (yards) per hour, said Yutaka Saiki, company spokesman.

The theoretical standard required for practical commercial applications is 10 meters per hour, he said.

Sumitomo Electric's superconducting power cable system uses liquid nitrogen to cool the cable so that it exhibits zero electrical resistance.

Conventional copper wiring loses electricity due to its resistance.

The next-generation line will effectively cut the transmission losses by half, when the energy required for cooling the cable is taken into account, Saiki said.

"We used our patented material called 'holmium' to produce the next-generation, superconductive wire. The volume of electricity the cable can transmit is roughly 100 times more than the conventional, high-temperature superconductive power cables," Saiki said.

The new cable's transmission capacity is roughly 10,000 times greater than the amount handled by conventional copper wiring, he added.

Sumitomo hopes to begin marketing the new superconducting wire in three years, primarily targeting the US market, Saiki said.

SPACE.WIRE