Submarine
projects may
face delays
Underwater power
transmission is a vital part
of infrastructure plans around
the world, as renewable
power sources become
available.
The opportunities for grid
interconnections, and
connecting offshore wind
farms to landmasses,
for example, have led grid
operators to implement
submarine power
transmission cables
to supplement or replace
aging and inadequate
grid infrastructures.
According to a recent
report from Pike Research,
submarine transmission cable
projects will increase from just
over 60 worldwide in 2011
to over 350 cables by 2020,
placing significant pressure
on the existing industry.
“Unfortunately, the supply
chain for high-voltage
submarine cables is not
ready for the exploding
demand for these products,”
said Pike Research president
Clint Wheelock. “Only a few
manufacturers in the world
are capable of producing
high-voltage submarine
cables, and purchasers
have few other places
to turn when manufacturers
tell them there will be an
unexpectedly long wait
for their desired product.”
Constraints on new project
development are not
confined to cable manufac-
ture. Site engineering
companies and cable-
laying ships are also highly
specialized and also
in limited supply.
The shortages are expected
to be most acute in Europe.
From 2011 to 2015, purchasers
and developers have
proposed to install an
additional 14,000 kilometers
of high-voltage submarine
cables in 53 separate
projects in Europe – nearly
three times the total of the
last 11 years. Some industry
watchers estimate that
the current supply chain
is capable of producing
only one-third of the required
cables for projects planned
in the next five years.
wiredInUSA - December 2011
27
