Prysmian to invest in a new cable laying vessel

This strategic new asset will bolster Prysmian Group’s long-term growth prospects in the submarine cable installation business and its interconnection and offshore wind project execution capabilities.

It will also boost the capability of its submarine cable operations by insourcing installation activities while achieving on-time delivery and execution.

Advanced features

Prysmian Group’s new vessel will have advanced features including deep water installation capabilities for depths of more than 2,000m, increased cable loading capacity and capability to perform complex installation operations supporting a variety of burial systems, including heavy duty ploughs.

It will also have state-of-the-art positioning and seakeeping systems and a reduced environmental footprint. The cable laying vessel is expected to be delivered by the second quarter of 2020.

The group’s submarine business secured several important contracts in 2017 with a robust order intake of approximately €1 billion, developing a solid order book in excess of €2,400 million as of 31 December 2017.

Recent main interconnection projects secured include IFA2 for a submarine link between Britain and France and an NGCP interconnection in the Philippines. In the offshore wind connections market, Prysmian has been awarded projects by RTE to link three offshore windfarms to the French electricity grid.

Prysmian already has three advanced cable laying vessels in its existing fleet – Giulio Verne, Cable Enterprise and Ulisse which are equipped with a wide range of high–tech installation and burial equipment the PLB machines Sea Mole and Otter and HD3 ploughing technology.

By Anne-Marie Causer